He was hers, only hers, always hers
by kissmekkkissme
Summary: Based after Midnight, what I think should happen next, a Damon and Elena story.
1. Chapter 1

Elena sighed. She seemed to be doing that a lot lately, but why should she sigh? She had her life back. She had Stefan, Aunt Judith, Margret, Meredith, Bonnie, Matt and even Caroline sometimes, now that she wasn't possessed by Malach and scuttling around her house like a lizard, things should be good. But they weren't because something was missing, some_one _was missing, a very important someone. _Damon. _Damon Salvatore, her boyfriend's brother- no that was a lie. He wasn't just Stefan's brother, he'd been- Well what had Damon exactly been to her? Dark mysterious stranger, enemy, friend and then... She wasn't even sure; she just knew she was hurting way too much now for him to have been just her _boyfriend's brother_.

"Elena, It's 6:30, time to wake up for school"

That was Aunt Judith, Elena sighed, thinking of the irony that she'd actually been up for an hour already, just thinking, thinking about_ him_. It would be a lie if she said she wasn't bitter about him. How dare he push his way into her thoughts and heart and then just _die _leaving her feeling like this, and the worst thing was, she knew she shouldn't be feeling like this, she should have been upset and then just moved on. She had Stefan, she should have let Damon drift from her head, and leave her thoughts. Sure there would be a small amount of grief but all too soon that would be forgotten and replace by fond memories. That's what should have happened, except she felt like this, and this wasn't particularly great.

She slowly rose out of bed and walked into her bathroom, checking out her appearance in the mirror, she had dark circles under her lapis lazuli eyes and her golden waves were limp, lifeless, like _him_. No Elena don't you dare let yourself think about him again. She sighed again, undressed and got into the shower. Showers always made her feel better, the warm water drumming down onto her head and her tired aching muscles, this was heaven. Heaven. She wondered if he was in heaven right now, he'd always been so sure that he was going to go to hell. She wasn't so sure, fine he'd killed, a lot, but at the end of the day he'd given it all up, everything, for _Bonnie_. Now that made her feel bitter, Damon and Bonnie. Sure Damon had assured her as he lay dying in her arms that he had only loved once, loved her. Only her, always her. But she couldn't help feeling bitter that Damon had spent most of the last weeks of his life with Bonnie, and not her. Elena had been stupid, taken Damon for granted, she'd thought Damon had an eternity, and eternity to love her, Damon had been sure he'd have an eternity. Apparently not.

Elena stepped out of the shower and towled herself off, she quickly walked back into her bedroom and put on some underwear and her robe. She quickly blow dried her hair back into its usual volumized massive waves, hanging down to her waist. She put on some mascara and a touch of red lipstick, that would have to do. It all felt like so much of an effort recently, to look nice, sure she still had Stefan but he thought she looked nice with or without make-up, so there was really no point. She pulled on her distressed skinny jeans and a plain white T-shirt, grabbed her black converse and her bag and sprinted down the stairs and out the door before Aunt Judith could ask any questions. She walked past the tree where Damon had first appeared to her, in the form of a crow. She remembered. She remembered so damn _clearly_ and it killed her. She cleared her mind and walked the rest of the way to school.

_Damon. _That was his name. At least it was a start, and he was slowly getting the feeling back in his body, which was also good. He thought. He was confused so, so confused. He was somewhere, or was it anywhere? It seemed slightly familiar. He lay there, trying to clear his mind when- A face appeared in his mind, the most beautiful face he'd ever seen with massive eyes the colour of lapis lazuli and a massive halo of golden hair. And then another face appeared with wide brown eyes and a shock of red hair. Two girls, two- Her eyes were so _blue, _the first girl, her eyes had been the colour of the summer sky. He knew something in that moment. He was_ hers_, he belonged to her. He was so inexplicably hers. She was his everything, his comets and stars, his world, his sun his moon and his light at the end of the fucking tunnel. He was hers. Now he just had to find her.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2;

Damon lay there impatiently, waiting for all of his body to come back into his control. He was so impatient, he needed to get up and get moving _now. _He needed to start his quest for _her_ now. He slowly tried to sit up and with a bit of effort, managed it._ Step one complete. _He thought bitterly, this really wasn't helping, having no control of his body. He wondered why that was. Had something happened to him? Had he been attacked? For some reason he doubted that, he felt like he had strength, lots of strength. For some reason he was sure that he could take down anyone if they decided to attack him. Strength. That was the answer, strength and power. He could feel the power inside of him trying to bubble to the surface; he sent some of that power through his body and soon found that he could stand, no, could fly. He had to find her, his one. The one person who he loved above all others. The one person he actually cared about. And with that, he took off into the sky.

School was dragging by today. Elena just wanted to be outside, in the air, where she could breathe. She felt suffocated recently, everyone was always crowding in around her and she couldn't breathe, or that's what it felt like anyway. She knew she wasn't being fair, her friends had always been like this, they'd always been so close. But right now it was too close and too much. And all she really wanted was to be alone, alone with the air. She remembered what it was like when Damon had picked her up and took off into the air. How weightless she'd felt, how goddamn _free. _He'd kissed her then. On that cool morning, in the middle of nowhere. He'd kissed her when they were flying, their first kiss. It'd been perfect really now she thought about it, sure it had felt good at the time but she'd been so _mad_ at him because back then it was Stefan and only Stefan, and she'd been so convinced that Damon had influenced her into kissing him back, influenced her into enjoying it. She was convinced he'd done _something _because kissing your boyfriends brother shouldn't feel that good. But it had. She remembered his velvety sweet lips pressing down ever so gently on hers and how he'd d-

"Elena, come on it's time for lunch! Are you day dreaming again"

Bonnie called to her from the other side of the classroom; everyone else seemed to have already left the room. Elena mentally shook herself then stood up and made her way over to Bonnie and Meredith who were waiting by the door.

"Sorry, I was just thinking"

"What about, it looked pretty nice, you had a dreamy expression on your face, was it about Stefan?" Meredith laughed

" No, it doesn't even matter, let's go to lunch" Elena faked a smile and walked out of the classroom, Meredith and Bonnie following behind her, and even though they thought she didn't, Elena saw the curious glances they were exchanging behind her back. She was out of the loop and she knew it, and the worst thing was that it was all her fault, she'd been pushing them both away recently. She hadn't meant to, she just seriously couldn't get _him_ out of her head and all her thoughts seemed to be directed towards him. And she hated it. And she also loved it. But it had always been that way with Damon, hadn't it? There had been times when she'd hated him,_ despised _him, and wanted him to just leave her and never come back. But then there'd been the other times. The times when they'd been friends, more than friends, much more really. And she'd trusted him, above anyone. Because he would never judge and he didn't have her on the ridiculous pedestal that Stefan did. No that wasn't fair, Stefan loved her, he thought she was perfect. Even though she was so far from it.

Damon was flying. Flying so fast that everything was blurred and he wasn't sure if it was night or day or something in between. He was hooked on his quest. Hooked on finding her. Hooked on her. He would find her, he wouldn't sleep or eat or stop at all until he was with her, drinking from_ her_ and sleeping in _he_r bed and relaxing with _her_. Because it'd all be worth it when he was with her, and he didn't want to be away from her a moment longer than he had to. Maybe when he was with her, she'd be able to tell her something's, things about him, things about _them _because right now, he didn't remember anything. Only her face. _Dannazione. He had to remember._ He wanted memories of her, memories that would last him until he found her, and then her presence would be enough, just to be near her would be enough, but right now he just wanted something to last him. To last him until he was back with his beloved. But no, the only things he could remember were blurred images of a time long, long, ago and words from a language that reminded him of _home. _Where ever that was. _Stop thinking Damon._ He had to concentrate, concentrate on finding her. He knew she wasn't in this place, wherever it was. He was in a completely different world to her and it was killing him. The _distance_ was killing him, he had to be close to her, and he had to find a way out of this world and into hers. A world where the sun and sky weren't dyed the colour of blood. _Blood. _ Now that was a thought to last him through the journey, blood, _her blood._ With that thought in his head Damon pushed himself a little harder, pushed himself to get to her. Because he knew, when he did that he'd be home. _Finally home._


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3;

Elena was sat on her bed. It was almost midnight and she was tired but sleep just wouldn't come. She didn't particularly want to sleep either, sleep meant dreams, dreams of him. Damon. Dreams where she'd wake up and for the briefest moment still be in his embrace. And it made waking up all the more hard, because she'd have to remember, remember everything. And it killed her. It always killed her. She needed something to do. She couldn't just sit here thinking about everything, thinking about him. She needed a distraction. She needed Stefan. She loved him, a lot, but it had just been so much hard work loving him. She's had to die and turn into a vampire, then die again and become a spirit, then be brought back to life, all to save him, to save his love. She didn't even really feel worthy of his love anymore, and she missed it, missed what they used to have. Missed what they had when the name Damon Salvatore had never entered her mind and she'd never gazed in to bottomless midnight eyes, always dilated with pleasure and lust. Lust for her.

That settled it, she was going to sneak out and go and see Stefan. All they needed was some alone time and then everything would go back to normal. Maybe she just missed Stefan, maybe that was why she was feeling so bad recently, and Stefan could make it all better. She slowly snuck down the stairs, careful to avoid the steps that creaked. When she reached the bottom she shrugged on her coat over her pyjamas and picked up her car keys.

"Elena?" Stefan asked groggily when he opened the door "What are you doing here at this time, love?"

"I missed you and had to see you" She said flirtily smiling up at him from under her lashes "We haven't been alone together for so long and I just- I missed you" She finished lamely, this already felt like a bad idea.

A slow smile spread across Stefan's lips "Okay, well come in then" He said stepping aside so she could enter the boarding house.

As soon as they got into Stefan's room, Elena pulled Stefan into a passionate kiss. He pulled away.

"Love, are you sure this is a good idea, I mean- "

"Just kiss me" She cut him off, pressing her lips back to his, Why could her not just kiss her? Why couldn't her just take her _claim_ her. Like _he'd_ done. Damon had never been hesitant about kissing her, he'd just taken her whenever and wherever he wanted, no regard for being caught or the consequences. But that was just Damon, he just took and took from her, and she loved it. Damon was her drug, he was her nasty heroin addiction, the addiction that she kept trying to kick but could never really manage it because he'd tasted so damn _sweet _and she'd been weak so she just gave herself to him over and over again, because really, who was she to deny the glorious, decadent sin that was Damon Salvatore.

She deepened the kiss even more for a second, and then led his lips down past her cheeks and jaw to her throat. She wanted him to bite her, to give her _something_, anything to make her feel alive again. Elena opened her eyes just before Stefan bit into her throat, and for a moment, a glorious sweet moment, she saw bottomless black eyes gazing back at her. She felt the sharp sting of Stefan's fangs as they slipped into the soft skin of her throat. And then the pleasure came, it was bliss, she'd missed this so much, being this close to someone. So close that literally their minds were touching, mingling, becoming one. This was everything. Except it wasn't, not really. Sure this was good, it always had been with Stefan, but somehow this felt wrong, she felt like she was betraying Damon's memory, because hadn't she promised that she'd never forget him, forget his love? That was exactly what she was trying to do really, forget Damon and his love, block him out of her head for a little while by filling her vision and thoughts with Stefan.

She felt the sting again as Stefan retracted his fangs from her neck and she watched in silence as Stefan bit down onto his own wrist, to draw blood for her to drink. He brought his wrist up to her mouth and Elena dutifully latched her lips onto it and sucked. She couldn't help comparing him to Damon who had tasted of passion, sin and something exciting that was so undeniably Damon. Stefan's blood tasted bland in comparison. She took one last swallow then pulled away. She needed to get out of here, now. She said goodbye to Stefan feeling vaguely embarrassed by their earlier intimacy and the awkwardness of the situation now. She quickly hopped into her car and drove, she wasn't entirely sure where she was going, but she knew that this had always helped Damon, Damon had always hid alone in his car, he'd once told her that after she'd died, he'd drove for miles and miles just aimlessly because it helped him think, it helped him deal with things. She was hoping it would help her now.


	4. Chapter 4

Damon stared around him in wonder. Taking it all in, the blue sky, the green, green grass and

everything else in-between, all of the colours he could name, and even some he couldn't. He hadn't

realised how much he'd missed the colours, for the weeks he'd been looking for her all he'd seen, all

he'd_ known_ was red, and although he loved the colour, he'd had enough of it. Anyway the colours

reminded him of _her_, his light, his _Elena. _He briefly recalled that her name meant light that was

appropriate; she was his light in the darkness. His twin flame. _Soul-mate_. Just thinking about her

made him feel warm inside, he could feel her love and goodness glowing in there, like she was the

only thing keeping him from plunging head first into the darkness, that darkness that used to

consume him. _Why are you resting Damon?_ The thought came into his head, why _was_ he resting? He

shouldn't be! He should be flying now, flying to his Elena, he was wasting time, time that could be

spent in her presence, he needed to go _now._ He'd vowed not to rest until she was in his arms, and

that was a vow he was determined not to break.

12:30 the alarm clock by Elena's bed read, 12:30 in the afternoon, she knew she should be up and be

enjoying her Saturday, but she just couldn't seem to find the motivation to get out of bed. She knew

she had to soon, she had plans to see Stefan, but so far, energy would just not come to her. Aunt

Judith and Margret were out so she had the house to herself. Slowly, very slowly, she rose from bed

and walked over to her IPod. She selected shuffle and waited for a random song to come on.

_You're so hypnotising, could you be the devil, could you be an angel?_

_Your touch, magnetising, feels like I am floating leaves my body glowing,_

_They say be afraid, you're not like the others, my futuristic lover,_

_Different DNA, they don't understand you._

_You're from a whole other world, a different dimension,_

_You opened my eyes; I'm ready to go lead me into the light._

_Kiss me kk kiss me_

_Infect me with your love and fill me with your poison_

_Take me tt take me_

_Wanna be your victim ready for abduction._

The song was ironic to say the least. It couldn't have described hers and Damon's relationship any better if it had been written for them. She listened to the words, taking each of them in, digesting them and letting her senses be assaulted, taken over, by memories.

The first time they'd really met, in the school gym, she almost kissed him.

Bonnie's house, the husband spell, he'd appeared to her again, she almost kissed him.

Her dream, where they'd danced and he'd taken her blood, she'd wanted to kiss him.

Caroline's house, trying to get her diary back, she'd wanted to kiss him, and she almost had.

Their time together in the dark dimension and all the kisses they'd shared.

They hit her, their force was massive. She was lost in nostalgia, of what was, and what could have been, if only she hadn't taken him for granted. If only she'd realised what she had before it was gone, cruelly ripped from her heart, leaving it shattered. Broken.

She threw her hair up in a ponytail and dressed quickly, she was running late, she vaguely realised that Stefan would be annoyed; he didn't like it when she was late.

She quickly ran out of the door and jumped in the car, swiftly driving to the boarding house. She knocked on the door and didn't have to wait long for Stefan to answer.

"Elena, love! Where have you been? I've been waiting for ages!" Elena couldn't ignore the slightly whiny and annoyed tone in his voice.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to keep you waiting"

She pulled Stefan into an embrace and buried her head into Stefan's chest, breathing in his scent. He smelled wrong somehow, _he doesn't smell like Damon_ she thought to herself. She let herself remember Damon's scent, sweet, sinful and exciting. All sex, all _man_. She pulled away from the hug.

"So what are we doing today?

"I thought we'd take a walk in the Old Wood and have a picnic, is that okay?"

"That's perfect" She said with a slight smile.

Stefan grabbed the bag with the food he'd prepared earlier in and they left the boarding house.

Elena was laying on the picnic blanket her and Stefan had brought with them, staring up at the canopy of leaves above her. Stefan had gone off to hunt after she had insisted about seven times that it was okay, and yes she'd be fine on her own for a while. That's how she liked it best at the moment anyway, to just be on her own.

It was beautiful here in the Old Wood, it was like time never affected it. Just like Damon. It was fitting really, Damon had lived here while he'd been in Fell's Church, this was where he spent most of his time, lounging up in trees looking so damn _graceful. _ She remembered their time here. When Damon had been possessed by Shinichi. When they'd been in that little house of Shinichi's and he'd looked after, _cared_ for her. That had really been the first time she'd seen the real Damon, the lost young boy hidden beneath thick layers of sarcasm and arrogance that served as armour. She remembered getting drunk off black magic wine, getting drunk off her excitement, getting drunk just off Damon's presence. But Damon did that to her, he made her feel so alive, she didn't understand that, how someone who had been dead for 500 years could be so alive and make her feel so alive.

She could feel him here, feel his presence. She felt like she could just call out to him and he'd be here. She'd call him then wait less than a second and she'd feel him breathing down her neck, sure she'd pretend to be mad, say he was invading her personal space and could he maybe not do that? Her being Stefan's and everything. But really, she ached for it, ached for him just being here. Just being Damon, inexplicably Damon. She wanted nothing more than to just gaze into endless orbs the colour of the midnight sky including the stars, the stars that only she could see. She knew every feature of his face so well. The creamy whiteness of his porcelain skin, the straight slim nose and those full, pouty red lips. Then there was the eyes. Those eyes. Velvety midnight black with stars captured in the depths, full thick lashes that she was jealous of, because really they were wasted on a boy and finally the strands of silky raven hair hanging in his eyes. Perfection.

There was a crackle of leaves near her. _Damon?_ She sent out mentally. It had to be, she could feel him. She jumped up, gazing wildly around her, she felt like that if only she just looked around quick enough she might get a glimpse of long slim legs encased in black skinny jeans, or rainbow reflections being cast off silky black hair, the silkiest she'd ever seen. She spun, looking behind her, trying to see something, _any_thing that related to Damon, just a sign. She was so _sure_, If she just wished hard enough and believed with all her being that somehow she'd be able to find him.

She felt a presence behind her, then arms were encircling her. Damon. It had to be, it just had to. But when she turned to face him, she was disappointed to find that she wasn't gazing into those gorgeous black eyes, she was instead staring into forest green ones. Oh, that's right, she'll never gaze into those eyes again, because Damon was dead. Gone.

"Stefan, d-do you think we could maybe head back? I'm feeling a little bit tired"

"Sure love, are you okay?"

"Yeah, I just feel tired. Do you mind if I stay at the boarding house tonight? I just don't want to be alone."

Stefan smiled tenderly at her. It wasn't the smile she wanted, she wanted, she wanted a secret smile, a beautiful, wild smile, that was only given to her.

"Of course you can love"

Stefan started collecting in the blanket and left over food using his vampire speed and was soon finished. They started a slow walk back to the boarding house, Mr's flowers was away visiting an old friend so it was just Elena and Stefan tonight.

The journey back passed pretty quickly, the conversation was pretty one-sided, Stefan doing most of the talking, passing her quietness and lack of interest in the conversation off as tiredness.

When they arrived back Elena excused herself and went and had a shower. She loved showers. She undressed quickly and stepped under the scalding water tipping her head back so the water rained down onto her face.

She finished in the shower then shoved on an old over-sized t-shirt that she kept in Stefan's room. She padded down the stairs and into the kitchen; a note was sitting on the table.

Love,

I've gone to the grocery store to pick you up some food for tonight and breakfast for tomorrow; I'll be back in about half an hour.

Love, Stefan.

She put the note down and jumped up to sit on one of the counters while she waited for her coffee. A memory filled her head. Her and Damon sitting in the kitchen, while he had been human. It was such a peaceful, content memory, they looked just like a normal boy and a normal girl, she was making him coffee and teasing him about how he drank it black with 6 sugars and that one day this was going to kill him, he was laughing and telling her to live on the edge.

She smiled sadly. An idea came into her head. Damon had lived here while he'd been human. Damon had a room here. She slowly jumped down off the counter and made her way out of the kitchen and up the stairs. She paused outside Damon's room, took a deep breath and pushed the door open. Nothing had changed. The bed was still un-made. There were still clothes strewn over the floor and books littered the room. She saw and IPod sitting in some speakers, she switched it on and viewed the last song he'd been listening to. It was Time is running out by Muse. How very appropriate. She pressed play and turned the music up. She grabbed a shirt off the floor- a black polo shirt of Damon's and breathed in his scent. The beauty of it brought tears to her eyes, she lay down on Damon's bed and cocooned herself in his sheets. Just for a little while, just for a moment, she promised herself.

When Stefan arrived home, Elena was sitting at on his bed sipping coffee. Nothing seemed to have changed and nothing seemed to have been disturbed. The door to Damon's room was shut, just like it had been before he left, just like it had been since Damon had left.


	5. Chapter 5

_Do you know what's worth fighting for? If it's not worth dying for? Does it take your breath away?_

_And you feel yourself suffocating? Does the pain weigh out the pride?_

_And you look for a place to hide; did someone break your heart inside?_

_You're in ruins. - 21 guns; Green Day._

Damon's P.O.V

He'd lost count of the days he'd been back in this world, _her_ world. He was searching for her, her presence, just a glimpse of her sweet aura that would lead him to her; so far, he'd had no such luck. He'd flew over countless towns and villages in the form of a crow, analysing the auras of all the maidens he'd passes. None of them had been her so far, he knew that as soon as he found her aura he'd know it was her, they were so in tune with each other, loving Elena was as easy as breathing for him, it was something he could do without trying, it came naturally. They were meant to be.

He was tired though, and he was aching, he knew what that meant, he was hungry. He had been trying to refrain from bleeding the countless women he'd passed on his journey; her blood would taste all the more sweet if he suffered a bit for it. But he realised now that his hunger was slowing him down, making his reactions slower and his thoughts less coherent, not to mention that it hurt like a bastard.

He swooped down on a small town and landed softly in a tree. He changed back into his human form, he gazed down at himself, his legs were clad in black torn up skinny jeans and he had no shirt on, his white chest was covered in cuts that he hadn't bothered to heal, to distracted by his quest to find her.

He jumped down from the tree and landed gracefully. He ran into the centre of the village and soon found a few women that would do for his snack. He saw a blonde and a brunette standing in a small book store, _perfect. _He sauntered in and pretended to look at books for a bit, noticing that both women were staring at his tattered jeans and bare chest, they hadn't even seen his face yet and they were admiring him. He flashed a familiar 200 kilowatt smile at nothing in particular and raised his head. The blonde was about 26 and was curvy, he was so hungry that he was severely tempted but she wasn't right. He didn't want to drink from her, this woman with hair similar to Elena's, she was just a cheap knock-off and Damon Salvatore did not do knock-offs. So he let his gaze trail past her and settle on the brunette.

He drew himself to his full height and strolled up to the woman, flashing a smile that a thousand mirrors had said was charming.

"Ciao, bella" He drawled at her, noticing the blush that crept onto her cheeks at his Italian words.

"H-Hello, I'm Lisa and you are?"

"Damon Salvatore" He purred into her ear.

He had to hold in a laugh, he'd only said four words to this woman and she was already like putty in his hands, women were so easy to control.

He compelled her to come outside into the alley way behind the shop with him and wasted no time in sinking his fangs straight into her neck, moaning as her warm blood flowed into his mouth, he drank deeply, draining her almost dry, he was severely tempted but he didn't have time to dump the body or anything, now he'd fed he needed to continue searching.

Elena's P.O.V

Elena was sitting on the floor of the living room in the boarding house doing her art homework, she felt content like this, Stefan was out hunting and she had her IPod plugged in playing softly in the background. But even like this she felt slightly off, sort of jumpy and wired.

She finished off her work, packed away and sat down on the couch. She had nothing to entertain her now, nothing to keep her busy and to keep the thoughts from flowing into her head. She looked around the comfy house, she all of a sudden she felt really hot, like boiling hot. The walls were closing in, she had to get out, she heard echoes of past conversations, one voice in particular, his voice, haunting her.

She ran from the boarding house out into the frigid winter hair, her breath flew out of her mouth in think clouds of steam. She was shivering yet she was burning up on the inside, so she ran, and kept on running. She ran right past the boarding house and out into the old wood. Her eyes were streaming from the cold and her unshed tears, her hair was snagging on low hung branches and thorns were scratching at the exposed skin of her arms, in her haste to leave the boarding house she'd forgotten a coat.

She tore her way into an open clearing in the wood, she had no idea where she was but somehow it felt familiar, that was when she realised that she'd been her with _him_ when he'd been possessed by Shinichi.

"Leave me alone!" She screamed into the air, her voice cracking and her knees giving way. " Just leave me alone and get out of my head!"

"Now why would I want to do that princess?"

She sat bolt upright when she heard the voice, that oh so familiar sweet voice, she turned towards the direction the voice had come from. She saw him standing there in all his glory.

"Damon?" She asked desperately.

"Who else?" He flashed her that cocky 200 kilowatt smile, and she darted into his arms.

Yet when she reached him, instead of feeling his strong arms around her she was only greeted by air, he was gone. No, he hadn't really been there in the first place, he'd been a vision, something her mind had created to try and soften the blow. She sunk down to the forest floor and started sobbing.

"Why are you crying Elena?"

She lifted her head to be greeted by Damon lounging near her on the ground.

"Because you're dead, and I wish I was too. Everything's ruined now"

"I may be dead, but I'm always with you, I'm a part of you, I belong to you"

She shuffled along the floor until she lay next to him, she reached out to touch him but her hand went straight through the vision. She sighed deeply and gazed up at the leaves above her head, her breath showing in front of her in a cloud of steam.

"Just, - Just stay with me, just for a little while; I don't want to feel alone again"

"You'll never be alone Elena, I'm always with you, you know that"

She didn't know how long she lay there in that secluded clearing in the forest just enjoying the silence, she also didn't know when Damon faded away and Stefan found her, picked her up and carried her back to the boarding house. She was too tired to say anything to him, too tired to come up with excuses as to why she'd been lying on the floor in the middle of the Old Wood.

She must have fell asleep at the boarding house because when she woke up she was lying, fully clothed in her bed at home. She checked her alarm clock and saw it read 3:30am, she had school tomorrow and knew she really should go back to sleep, but she just wasn't tired anymore. She climbed out of bed, wrapped her blanket around her and sat at her desk, switching her laptop on.

She brought up the internet and went on Google, wondering what to search. She didn't know what possessed her to type Damon Salvatore into the search engine and press enter, but she did. She went straight to the images section and was soon staring straight into the face of Damon Salvatore, yet it was not as she had known him. The picture was grainy and from the 60's if she was to guess. She smiled at the picture and couldn't help a sob from escaping her lips, Damon looked so carefree, he was dancing in a club wearing tight leather pants, his head thrown back, mid laugh. The image was just so Damon, they'd caught the image right in a moment, and she couldn't help but wish that she'd been there, living that moment with him.

Exhaustion suddenly washed over her, so she rested her head on her desk and let sleep claim her.

_She was back in the woods. It was night, the stars were shining in the sky and the whole atmosphere was one of anticipation and excitement. She looked down at her body, she was wearing a silky black dress that fell out from her in folds of material, her feet were bare._

_Suddenly two hands were covering her eyes and she could feel warm breath on her neck, it made the hairs on her spine stand straight up._

"_Guess who..." A voice, _that_ voice, purred softly in her ear._

"_Damon" She half murmured, half moaned in response._

_The hands released her eyes and she turned around to face him. He was so beautiful her heart broke; she took him all in, from his bare chest and jeans to his perfect, angelic face. _

_Without saying anything, he laced his fingers with hers and placed a hand on her waist, the skin immediately erupted in goose bumps, Damon smiled and she didn't doubt that he knew exactly what his touch did to her. At first she didn't know what he was doing as he slowly started to sway, but she soon caught on. They were dancing. It was even better than she remembered, dancing with Damon. He moved her so gracefully, that she felt like she was flying. He waltzed her around and around the clearing his eyes never leaving hers, his intense gaze penetrating her and seeing her soul._

_She felt complete, she couldn't help it when she was with Damon, the whole world just closed up until it was just them; just a boy and girl, holding each other so tightly because they knew that pretty soon, they'd have to let go. _

_Damon twirled her around and the skirt of her dress flew out around her, exposing some of her legs, Damon's eyes flew hungrily to them. She felt so beautiful, so alive, so _free. _Soon their dancing had slowed, slowed until it stopped and they were just holding each other, gazing intently into each other's eyes. Elena felt so relaxed, so sleepy, she let her head fall back and melted her body against Damon's, so he was the only thing holding her up. She tipped her head back even further and soon felt Damon's lips connect with her throat. _

_His sweet, velvety lips trailed up her neck placing soft, soft kisses in a trail along it. His talented tongue made exquisite patterns on her skin, she moaned softly at the intimate contact. His teeth came next, nibbling softly on her neck, going higher until he softly nibbled her earlobe, tracing it with his tongue. His lips came back down to her neck and she knew it was coming, so she wasn't surprised when she felt the snake bite sting of Damon's fangs. _

_Then she saw the sky, the moon, the stars and the comets, and then the universe was swallowed up in Damon's midnight eyes._

Elena woke with a start, her alarm was going off. She was brought back to reality was a smack. She switched her alarm off and strolled into the shower. Ready for another day of pretending. Ready for another day of missing Damon. Ready for another day of drifting, waiting until she could feel again.


	6. Chapter 6

_Even angels have their wicked schemes, and you take that to new extremes. But you'll always be _

_My hero, even though you lost your mind. Just gonna stand there and watch me burn, but that's alright because I like the way it hurts._

_Just gonna stand there and hear me cry, but that's alright because I love the way you lie._

_-Rihanna ft. Eminem, I love the way you lie part 2._

Damon's P.O.V

Damon could feel her; he was close, so close. He'd spotted her aura a mile away, just after he'd entered a state called Virginia. Her aura shone bright above all others, like a beacon of hope and love shining in a world of sameness. Her aura was pure and beautiful, the aura of a true maiden. He was flying faster than ever now; being in such close proximity with her tantalising aura was making him push himself harder, though he was almost burnt out.

He was starving and he was aching but he couldn't give up now, not when she was so close to him. Every bone in his body was screaming in protest but he pushed on, riding the waves of pain. He was confused, almost delirious, exhausted and famished, yet still determined, determined to find his beloved.

Things were coming back to him now, memories were assaulting him, blurred images of the past, he saw faces he didn't recognise, he heard words that had never been spoken to him before. The memories kept coming, hitting him one after the next. It seemed that finding her aura had triggered them, triggered his memories to start coming back, battering him with their force. He didn't know what he was doing, he was flying aimlessly, flying straight towards her, not noticing his surroundings, keeping his mind full of one thing; her aura.

He was close now, really close. He was flying over a small town; a town that looked oh so familiar. He sensed it, the place where she was, it filled his vision. The old boarding house surrounded by a forest. _The Old Wood, his territory. _The thought popped into his head with no prompt, he was almost there, almost with her. He was almost home.

Elena's P.O.V;

Elena braced herself before knocking on the boarding house' door, everyone was going to be there; Stefan, Bonnie, Meredith, Matt, Mrs Flowers; everyone. She didn't like being around them all anymore, it was too painful, to be around these people who had gone through everything with her, yet all seemed to be able to move on with their lives.

She also had the strangest feeling; she felt like _it_ was going to happen today. Whatever _it_ was, she wasn't sure, but since she'd woken up she'd been filled with an anticipation that had given her the surge of energy to get out of bed.

Something was going to happen today, she wasn't quite sure what, but it was something big; she could taste it in the air around her.

She knocked softly and the door was soon answered by Bonnie, who swooped on her and embraced her in a bone crushing hug, then grabbed her hand and pulled her into the dining room, where everyone was gathered.

"Hello love" Stefan greeted her warmly, placing a chaste kiss on her cheek. She smiled in response, not able to muster up a more enthusiastic reaction.

The room soon went quiet and Bonnie started to speak.

"Well, we're all here because this is the first gathering we've had since the other dimension" Elena shivered slightly hearing it being mentioned.

"This is also the first meeting we've had since Damon died, and if I know Damon, I don't think he'd have wanted us to forget about him so easily"

The sentence from Bonnie made Elena's blood boil, she couldn't help it, a sharp sting of jealousy coursed through her body filling her up; she had to say something.

"But you didn't; know him I mean. Not really" Elena surprised herself by speaking these words.

Bonnie looked taken aback by Elena's comment and for a second nobody said anything, just stared at Elena, trying to make sense of what she'd just said. The first person to break the silence was bonnie, she laughed slightly.

"What do you mean Elena? Of course I knew Damon, we grew quite close throughout our time in the dark-"

"Just stop" Elena cut Bonnie off "Just stop it; you didn't know him, not really, not like I did. You think you knew him, but you never really got past the surface, really you and Damon were nothing"

"Elena, sweetie, Damon and I, we had a thing"

"I'm aware, I'm just saying that it wasn't a very important thing" With that parting comment, Elena stormed out of the room mentally telling Stefan to not follow her.

She felt better now; now that she'd got some of her anger out of her system. She hadn't been angry at Bonnie; not really. She'd just been there, when Elena needed a release. She'd just go and apologise soon anyway. She was happy she'd had an excuse to come outside anyway. She could feel it; that _thing_ was coming

She stood there staring at the sky, not moving; poised for action. Something was defiantly coming; it was close now, really close, almost on top of her. The world started to close in, she could feel it, an aura shooting towards her at break-neck speed, a familiar aura. An extremely familiar one.

Both's P.O.V;

He hit the ground with a thud, in the back yard of the boarding house, slamming down on to the floor, too exhausted to stop himself before he hit the ground. He stood slowly, muscles straining at the effort, his vision blurred. He saw her face clearly though, oh so clearly.

At first Elena did nothing, she stood there and stared; not quite believing that he, _Damon_ was standing right in front of her and this time, he wasn't a vision. She was in a trance, staring intently at his beautiful face.

After a few seconds, she started to walk towards him, taking small, staggered steps, almost tripping over her feet. She stopped when she was close enough to touch him. She raised her small hands and placed them on his flushed cheeks.

She slowly started stroking his cheeks, tracing small circles on them, almost as if to check he was real. When she seemed satisfied her hands moved, they traced his lips, trying out the shape, to check that they were the right shape; as perfect as they had been before. She ran her fingers along his slim, straight nose and traced his now closed eye-lids, trying to count those inky, long lashes. She paused for a second, not quite sure what to do, then she spoke.

"D-Damon?" She croaked, her throat had become incredibly dry.

"Yes princess?" He whispered.

A small sob escaped her lips, and then she threw herself at him. Arms locking around his neck, feet lifting off the floor. She kissed him, kissed his face, anywhere she could, any patch of skin, tasting it, tasting him. She kissed him everywhere she could think of, except his lips, they would be the main event; she wanted to kiss every part of him before she lost herself completely in his presence.

When there was nowhere left to kiss, no patch of skin that her lips had no come into contact with, she softly, ever so softly pressed her lips to his.

There was an explosion in both their heads. It was everything, the comets and stars, the whole world. The whole world wrapped up into one kiss, one kiss exchanged between lovers. Elena breathed him in, tasting his familiar lips, tears streaming down her face because he was _here_ and this was what had been missing, this was what was going to bring her back to life. This was everything her and Stefan weren't.

Damon's knees gave way and they both sank to the floor, never breaking the kiss, desperately pressing their lips together, any distance was too much. Elena's hands threaded themselves into his silky hair and Damon's encircled her waist pulling her even closer into him until their bodies were flush against each other. He was under her spell; he couldn't resist the pretty prize that was her intoxicating lips. He moaned as her hands moved to his chest, soothing all the cuts that were left on there. He pulled away ever so slightly, just so he could look at those lapis lazuli eyes that had haunted his every thought since the day he woke up. He gazed into them, an eternity may have passed, but then he could spend eternity in her eyes; then he passed out in her arms.


	7. Chapter 7

_Your fingertips across my skin, the palm trees swaying in the wind. Images. You sang me Spanish lullabies the sweetest sadness in your eyes, clever trick. Well I never wanna see you unhappy,_

_I thought you'd want the same, for me. Goodbye my almost lover, goodbye my hopeless_

_Dream, I'm trying not to think about you, can't you just let me be? So long_

_My luckless romance my back is turned on you, shoulda known you'd bring me heart ache; almost lovers always do. - Almost lover; A Fine Frenzy._

Damon could feel himself slowly starting to come round, the blackness that enveloped him was starting to fade and his thoughts were becoming coherent once again. They day's events were swirling around and around in his head, blurred images swimming one after the other leading up to the moment, _that_ moment where his lips had touched hers and the fireworks and stars that had followed.

He really should wake up, wake up to see her, his Elena. But he was just so damn _tired, _all he wanted to do was let the darkness drag him back under and sleep, sleep for a while, just a little while. He hadn't stopped moving since he'd woken up, since he'd remembered her.

"_Damon" _

A voice was calling him, dragging him back from the blackness that consumed him now.

"_Damon_"

This person was persistent. He tried to recognise the voice, it sounded vaguely familiar, but it didn't really matter because it was the wrong voice, it wasn't _her_ voice, his beloved's voice. He didn't want to wake up to this voice, he wanted _her, _he wanted her to be the first thing he saw when he woke up and the last thing he saw before going to sleep at night.

The darkness was fading now, he was regaining consciousness, he didn't really want to. He wanted to wait until Elena was with him; he would wake up for her, not for this person who meant nothing to him.

He opened his eyes slowly to blinding bright light, he buried his head under the soft blanket that was covering him and tried to go back to sleep, but a hand grabbed the blanket and pulled it so it came off his head. The bright light was coming through the window on the wall, bright winter light was streaming through, hitting him right in the face, he groaned softly and stretched his arms above his head.

"Damon! I'm so happy you're awake! How did you sleep? How are you feeling? Are you okay? Are you hungry?"

He looked to where the voice was coming from to see a small girl, around the same age as his Elena with red hair and brown eyes, _the other face_, the other face that had appeared in his mind but had been over-shadowed by Elena's. He looked at her for a second, staring into her wide brown eyes, searching for something, _any_thing that would show him who this girl was, and why she'd been in his head. But all he saw was happiness, anticipation and maybe a little fear. He looked at her quizzically for a second longer and she spoke again.

"So… are you hungry? I fed you earlier, but I thought maybe you may be hungry again" She held up her wrist, which revealed a small scratch and two puncture marks, two _teeth _marks, his teeth marks.

He didn't answer for a second, just stared, still wondering just who this girl was, was she a friend of Elena's? That was probably it; they looked around the same age. But if she was just Elena's friend then why was she looking at him like that? Why was she here at all when Elena could be? A wave of longing shook him, he wanted Elena, and he wanted her _now. _

"Where's Elena?"

For a second the girl looked taken a back, then a small sad smile spread across her lips, a smile that didn't reach her eyes and looked forced.

"Why do you want Elena? Why is it always Elena? Why can you not just be happy with _me?_"

He frowned at her questions, what was she talking about? Of course it was always Elena, he loved her. He loved her with such intensity that it blinded him to everything else, even the most beautiful things seemed plain in comparison to her. As for her second question, of course it would always be Elena, love like this didn't happen more than once in a lifetime, you only got one soul mate. As for her last question, this left him completely flummoxed, _why can't you just be happy with _me? What was that even supposed to mean, he didn't know, so he just shook it off.

"Because I love her."

The answer left his lips without him even thinking about it, it was so simple. But so very true.

The girl looked angry for a moment but then another expression found its way onto her face, it looked something like defeat. She stared at him for a moment longer then she spoke very, very softly.

"But you shouldn't, I wish you wouldn't"

She stood slowly, and with one last, sad parting glance, she left. Damon stared stunned after her, _who was that person?_

Elena's P.O.V;

Elena was waiting agitatedly, waiting for Damon to wake up. She was upset that she was down here and he was up there; with _Bonnie._ He was only upstairs yet the distance was killing her. She was going to do it properly this time, she wasn't going to take him for granted, she wasn't going to waste his love and everything that went with it. She hated being apart from him, she'd just gotten him back and she was so, _so _afraid that she was going to lose him again. That he'd be ripped mercilessly from her again, leaving her with nothing again, nothing but a few memories of midnight eyes and a smile that was only given to her.

She almost jumped out of her skin when she heard footsteps on the stairs, they sounded heavy and dejected, _defiantly not Damon_, she thought to herself. Damon's steps made no noise, he moved with the grace of a stalking panther, and she was his prey; she had been since day one. She loved it. She always had really, the way his eyes always flicked hungrily to her face even when he was talking to someone else.

"He asked for you, he wants _you_"

Elena could sense the hostility that laced Bonnie's voice, like poison. She felt bad, maybe Bonnie did like Damon, in fact she _knew_ that Bonnie liked Damon. Just not as much as her. She didn't love him like Elena did, Bonnie could live without Damon, and Elena couldn't.

"Okay, I'll go to him now"

"Right, well I'm going to go home for a while. I'll probably be back later"

"Right, well, bye"

Bonnie gave her a small, strained smile, then span around and walked out of the Boarding house, Elena watched her go, standing in the same spot until the door had slammed behind Bonnie. Things had changed, between her and Bonnie. But it wasn't her fault, she'd got there first, Damon had loved her first, there were things between her and Damon that Bonnie just couldn't comprehend. A boy shouldn't be the thing to tear their friendship apart. But then, Damon Salvatore was never just a boy. Not really.

Elena walked slowly up the stairs; she wanted to savour this. Savour the moment that she'd see his face again. She paused outside the door, and then walked in.

His scent was the first thing that hit her, his exquisite, sinful scent enveloping her. Her eyes flew around the room, it was just as it was last time she was in here, messy and full of books, ancient books. Her eyes slid across the room until they reached the bed. She took him in again, sliding up from the blanket that covered his lower half; her breath hitched as she saw his pale, beautiful chest showing over the blanket and then came his face. The most beautiful face in the world.

"How are you feeling? "She asked him softly.

"Better now you're hear"

A sob escaped her lips as she walked over to him; he shifted to make room, and then patted the space next to him, looking at her expectantly from under his eyelashes. She slid in next to him, pulling the blanket around her, his arm snaked around her shoulders; pulling her closer to him. She was once again engulfed in Damon's scent; she buried her head into his chest and took a few deep breaths.

"Elena, what are you doing?" Damon asked, looking down at her quizzically.

"Smelling you. Memorizing your scent; so that next time I lose you, I'll have more than just a few scattered memories and what if's. I want to do it properly this time Damon, I'm not going to waste our time and take it for granted."

He stared at her for a while, trying to make sense of what she'd just said_, what did she mean, next time I lose you?_ He wasn't going anywhere. That's when it hit him, what did he really know about his and Elena's relationship? He didn't even know what had happened to him.

"Elena, what happened to us? What happened to _me?"_

She stared at him for a second, as if considering what to say. Her eyes held a glimpse of fear in their blue depths. She looked into his eyes, they showed pleading, she melted in that moment; she had to tell him, she owed him that at least.

"Before I say anything, all you need to know is that I love you, so, _so_ much"

He nodded at her and smiled encouragingly at her. She took a deep breath, then spilled her heart out to him. She told him everything; everything about him, them, Stefan; all of it. She told him the small amount she knew about his childhood; about his mother. She told him about Catherine and how they looked almost exactly alike and how him and Stefan had both fallen for her, then they'd found out that she was a vampire, the choice they gave her; the choice between the two of them, the hardest choice in the world. She told him how Catherine had gone out in the sun without her ring and had burned, and the events that had followed, culminating in him and Stefan becoming vampires.

She told him a little bit about how she'd met Stefan and fallen in love with him; her heart broke when she saw the flash of pain in his eyes, yet she carried on going; she'd promised him, promised him the truth. She told him about their first meeting in the school gym, about how she'd lost herself in his eyes and how he'd tried to compel her to kiss him, then came their meeting at Bonnie's house and how she's almost let him bite her. She filled him in quickly about finding out about vampires and how him and Stefan had been turned, she went quickly through the events that had led up to her becoming a vampire, then the night with Catherine, the night she'd died.

The next part was the hardest to tell because she barely remembered it herself, she told him what she knew he'd done in the period she'd been a spirit, how he'd drank himself into a stupor every night and how all the women he'd bled had been blonde and how he'd never looked past the blonde hair, refusing to see that they weren't her. She told him about Klaus next and how when it had come down to it Damon had done the honourable thing and helped protect Fells Church from him, how in the end, even after Stefan, Bonnie, matt and Meredith had all shunned him, he'd still come back and fought, fought for her, because it's what she would have wanted. Next came the part where she'd come back, how he'd wrapped his leather jacket around her then left them all in that clearing.

She told him next about Shinichi, who had come when Damon had been at his most vulnerable and promised him things, got inside his head and made him trust him, then took control; possessing him to do horrible things, things that Damon had never really forgiven himself for. She told him briefly about their time in the Old Wood, the time Shinichi had stolen from him; she was giving it back now. She told him of their time together in the Dark Dimension, how she'd seen the good in him, the good side of him that no one ever saw, she'd given into her feelings in the Dark Dimension, she told him of all the kisses they'd shared, how she'd seen his soul; his chained up, lonely soul. She told him of how they'd saved Stefan and the repercussions; Damon becoming human. She told him how he'd hated being human, he'd forgotten how to be human about five centuries ago. She reluctantly told him about what she knew of his time in the Dark Dimension with Bonnie, they'd become close, too close for Elena's taste.

She'd been wrong before;_ this_ part was going to be the hardest, telling Damon of his own death, telling him of just how he'd ended up lying alone in the Dark Dimension. Damon froze in her arms as she told him of his own death, how he'd lay dying in her arms and finally admitted his love for her.

Damon looked at her for a long moment, she couldn't read the unfathomable look on his face, his walls were back up, and the armour was back on.

"I- I remember"

He spoke hoarsely, barely above a whisper. Her heart broke in that moment, he sounded truly haunted, and she couldn't really blame him, it had all just come back to him, all the things he'd seen, all the things he'd done. Damon before had had five centuries to perfect living with all he's seen, Damon now had had about five minutes; and five minutes was definitely not long enough to learn how to cope with all Damon had seen.

"It's okay though Elena" He said, obviously spying her broken expression "It's not all bad because I remember you princess, I remember _you_ and I remember _us_ and I remember that I love you"

His lips crashed on hers then and everything else was forgotten. He kissed her with such a raw passion, he kissed her like a starving man falling on his first meal in months. He rolled ontop of her, supporting his weight with his knees, his hands place on under her breasts, fingers splayed in the grooves of her ribs, fitting perfectly.

His lips left hers and trailed onto her cheek, leaving a trail of fire in its wake, his kisses burning her skin yet sending shivers down her spine. He nibbled her earlobe softly, nipping it with his un-retracted fangs, locking his lips around it and sucking, ever so softly. His lips left her ear and she heard him breathing deeply, breath tickling her ear.

"Mio" He growled softly in her ear.

In that moment she was even more his, if that was possible. She moaned softly at his words, he knew she loved it when he spoke Italian. His lips kissed a path down from her ear, past her jaw and onto her neck and she encouraged him all the way; threading her fingers in that perfect soft hair, now perfectly messy. His lips rested on the base of her throat for a minute, his breath blowing softly, while he nuzzled his nose into the crook of her neck, driving himself wild with her intoxicating scent.

He bit down hard, placing his hand over her mouth to cover her scream; which quickly became a moan; a moan of unexplainable pleasure as he began to suck and lick her neck. It had felt good in her dreams, but right now was everything, _everything_ in the world, wrapped up in the passion wrought between two people.

Elena felt herself fading, smiling softly to herself, because it was so _Damon; _he always took a little bit too much, he was never careful, he was greedy when it came to her, blood and body; he was greedy. She didn't mind though, she would happily die right now, in Damon's arms, feeling this exquisite form of pleasure.

Just when she was about to pass out, she felt the slight sting of his fangs slipping out of his skin. She watched him from under heavy eyelids as he bit into his own wrist, bringing two perfect droplets of blood the colour of black magic roses to the skin.

He held his wrist out to her and she happily brought her lips to it, kissing it softly as she licked off the blood that marred his perfect skin; tasting his blood that was so Damon, so exciting, so wild and so _sweet._ She pulled away slowly and smiled softly as she noticed the blood that sat on the corner of Damon's exquisite lips; she leaned in slowly and closed her lips around it in the _softest_ kiss.

She leaned back slightly, wanting to see his eyes, she gazed into them, they were as dark as the most terrifying nightmare and as beautiful as the midnight sky which they so resembled. She smiled in satisfaction as she saw the stars in those eyes, the stars that only she got the privilege to see. Damon responded by smiling _that_ smile, the smile only she got to see, that beautiful, wild smile that reminded her of a rainbow in the middle of a hurricane. That was Damon though, everything about him was beautiful and wild, Damon could never be tamed, she'd long since given up trying, and anyway, she didn't want to change a thing about Damon Salvatore. He was perfect.


	8. Chapter 8

_Hit me like a ray of sun; burning through my darkest night. You're the only one that I want; think I'm addicted to your light. I swore I'd never fall again, but this don't even feel like falling, gravity can't forget, to pull me back to the ground again.- Halo; Beyoncé._

Elena's P.O.V;

Elena awoke to the feeling of lips on her stomach, kissing it so very softly. She smiled slightly to herself as she remembered where she'd fallen asleep and the events that had taken place _before_ she'd fallen asleep. She lay still, taking in her surroundings, she was very aware of everything. She felt that her T-shirt had ridden up slightly while she'd been asleep, that would be why she could feel lips on her stomach. _Damon's_ lips, kissing her stomach in such a tantalising way, that it made her toes curl in pleasure.

She moaned softly, a small smile curving her lips as Damon continued to place soft, _soft _kisses on her stomach, his tongue circling her belly button, a sensitive spot that she didn't even know she had. She opened her eyes slowly, revelling in the pleasure Damon was giving her. She stared down the bed to see Damon looking up at her with mischief in his laughing black eyes, which right at that moment seemed to hold the whole universe in their depths.

"Morning sunshine" Damon whispered on to her stomach, his warm breath tickling her.

"Damon, it's not morning, its dark out"

"Well, it's my morning. I am a creature of the night, remember?"

"How could I forget" She countered back, rolling her eyes, but trying her hardest not to smile.

He responded by giving her stomach a soft nip with his front teeth, she giggled softly then rolled over so she was on top of Damon, fully aware that he was letting her gain that advantage. She grabbed his wrists and pinned them above his head, staring down in to his eyes and unintentionally getting lost, just like she always did. They were just so _damn_ beautiful, Elena was actually jealous, she'd never felt jealous over the beauty of a _boy, _but it was true, Damon was more beautiful than her.

"Do you surrender?" She asked, trying her best to come across as serious.

"Yes! I surrender! Please stop this torture! I'm so scared" He laughed.

Quick as a flash, he'd pulled his wrists out of her grasp and had them on her hips, his fingers slipping underneath the tank top she was wearing, tracing delicate patterns on her skin. His eyes weren't laughing anymore, there was a different emotion filling them now, _desire._ Elena suddenly felt slightly scared, or more precisely, nervous. She didn't know how to do this; she'd never done _that_ before, not with Stefan, not with _anyone, _despite what most people in this town believed. All at once she started to feel sort of embarrassed, inferior. Damon must have done _that_ with hundreds of women, _thousands_ and she'd never done it before; and this time, she couldn't fool him.

Damon's hands moved up higher, so they now rested on her waist, thumbs tracing along her stomach and Elena's breath caught in her throat. He leaned up and captured her lips in a hard kiss, a kiss full of desire, passion and hunger, a kiss like no other she'd experienced before. His tongue begged for entrance into her mouth and she happily complied, following his lead, their tongues melting into an ancient dance, a dance that she'd only just learnt the steps to. His fingers played with the bottom of her tank top, inching it higher and higher until his fingers were splayed in the grooves of her ribs, fitting perfectly there.

His lips moved from her lips to her neck, once again biting down, sinking his fangs into her, even though it had only been a few hours since he'd taken her blood, taken a bit _too much_ of her blood; she wasn't going to complain though. She moaned out his name _Damon_, which seemed to spur him on, make, her want to moan it again.

He pulled her top over her head, revealing her white, lacy bra, his eyes fixing on it, taking in the sight before he buried his head into her cleavage. He nuzzled her breasts through her bra, trailing his lips down in between them, pinging her bra softly with his teeth. His hands slid up her back, expertly undoing the clasps. He slipped the straps gently down her arms, and removed her bra. He stared at her, taking her in; his angel, there in all her glory. He rolled them over again so he was on top, and then softly placed kisses down in a trail to her breasts, taking her nipple in his mouth and sucking it gently.

Elena arched off the bed and moaned. She'd never done this before, and right now she was wondering why, because it felt so damn good. She was still afraid though, afraid of going all the way and finally giving someone, the one thing she'd horded for so long. She threaded her fingers into his silky hair, pushing his head down onto her breasts, craving more contact, Damon happily complied, taking his other breast and giving it the same loving treatment as the first.

His lips moved off her breasts and onto her stomach, kissing it, trailing his lips lower and lower until her reached her shorts. He gently slid his hands down her body and slowly undid her shorts, his fingers deftly undoing the buttons and sliding them down her legs. He looked at her, eyes boring into hers, and she knew, this was it. After this there was no going back, this was the last time she could speak up. She was so tempted not to say anything, just let him have his wicked way with her, but she was scared, of what exactly she didn't know. Maybe because if she did_ this_ with Damon, she would have truly cheated on Stefan, it felt as if all the kisses and touches she'd exchanged with Damon hadn't really been her being unfaithful to Stefan, not_ really;_ but if she did _this_, then that was that. The ultimate betrayal.

"Damon, not yet. Not that, I-I'm, It's, I'm scared Damon, I've never done it before" She stuttered, her head down, too embarrassed to look him in the eyes after that confession.

"It's okay Elena, I get it. You don't have to _ever_ be embarrassed around me. I know that you're still a maiden and I respect it, I respect _you"_ He said softly, his fingers gently gripping her chin and pulling her face up for a kiss. "There are other things we can do anyway" He said, mischief once again present in his eyes.

His hands once again trailed down from her face, passing over her body until he reached her underwear, putting a finger under it and playfully flicking the material. Then, quick as a flash, they were gone and she was naked, completely and sinfully _naked; _naked in the presence of Damon Salvatore. He kissed her belly once again, trailing his lips down, further and _further. _He kissed her thigh gently, sucking and biting, knowing that a mark would appear in the morning, marking her as _his. _Elena's breath hitched once again and he smiled onto her thigh, he couldn't quite believe that Stefan had never done this with her before; actually he could believe that, it was _Saint_ Stefan that he was talking about. Stefan was a fool, if Elena was _all _his, he's make sure that she was constantly moaning in the most exquisite forms of pleasure, but Stefan thought that a few chaste kisses here and a few_ I Love you's_ there was enough, but it wasn't, not for _his_ dark princess; he knew that Elena craved the passion that only he could give her.

He kissed her thigh again then started moving to the centre, his lips coming so _close, _but then kissing her _other_ thigh instead; he was intending on dragging this out as long as possible. He gave her other thigh the same loving attention as the other one, kissing it, running his fangs along it, so _tempted_ to bite, but refraining.

Finally, he brought his lips to her, in the place that she wanted him the _most, _kissing her softly, dragging his talented tongue in luxurious circles inside her. Elena's whole body was on fire, burning with the pleasure Damon was giving her, her hands were clutching the sheets, knuckles white. Her whole body was covered in a fine sheen of sweat, her head was thrown back to the heavens and soft moans and whimpers were regularly escaping her lips. Something was building inside her; a pleasure beyond no other was building, threatening to release. She could feel Damon's hands gripping her thighs, nails slightly digging in; she predicted the bruises that would be there in the morning. But she didn't _care, _because right now, the morning, and the rest of the world for that matter felt very far away. All she knew was Damon and the brilliant pleasure he was making her feel, pleasure like no other.

It was as if an explosion had taken place in her body when she came, she moaned out his name the moment she came undone, when all the barriers fell down and she was reduced to a panting sweating _mess_. He whole body was tingling deliciously from the orgasm and right then she felt more alive than ever before; it was as if Damon had switched the whole world on for her, just for a moment, just for a sweet blissful moment, the whole world came alive. She closed her eyes and sighed in contentment, feeling very heavy and sleepy.

Damon lifted her body slightly, wrapping his arm around her, she buried her head into his neck, breathing deeply; it smelled very Damon in there. She could feel herself starting to drift again, she was lost in that delicious moment before sleep, and she was so _comfortable_ right then, wrapped up in Damon's arms, their legs tangled together. She was just about to fall asleep when Damon stiffened beneath her.

"Damon? What's wrong?" She asked, lifting her head up to look him in the eyes.

"Stefan"

That one word said everything, she sat up quickly, eyes wildly searching the room for her clothes, she spotted them, then dressed quicker that she ever had before, struggling with the buttons on her shorts, scratching herself as she pulled her top over her head. Damon watched her, an unreadable expression on his face, she couldn't look at him, couldn't look at him to see what expression his eyes held. When she finally did look to his face, his eyes were smouldering, burning with an expression that shook her to the bone, she didn't quite know what the expression was, it was completely unreadable. It scared her. They stayed there for a while, just staring at each other, eyes boring into each other, lapis lazuli blue meeting midnight black.

"Love! I'm home! Is Damon awake yet?"

"Up here Stefan and yes Damon is awake"

She said all that without once breaking eye contact with Damon, she distractedly ran a hand through her messy hair, which just a few minutes ago, Damon had been running his hands through. They heard Stefan's footsteps on the stairs and in less than a few seconds Stefan had pushed open the door and was standing in the room, staring at Damon, completely oblivious as to what had taken place in the room a few minutes ago.

"Brother" Damon spoke clearly and precisely, his eyes finally shifting away from Elena "I bet you're happy to see me" That familiar arrogant grin spreading across his face, masking the turmoil that was taking place underneath the surface.

"Damon" Stefan said, ignoring the question "How is this possible? What happened, do you have any idea how you're alive?"

"Nope" Damon replied indifferently, popping the P.

"And you don't care? Don't want to find out?"

"Well, sure, I'd love to _little_ brother. But my diary's sort of full right now, I have women to woo and men to fight, now if you'd excuse me, I'm feeling rather tired, I just engaged in some extremely gruelling physical activities" Damon replied, a wicked smirk crossing his beautiful features.

"Fine. I was hoping you might have grown up since you'd come back Damon, guess I was wrong"

Stefan spun on his heel and marched out the room, Elena noticed the way his fists had clenched while he'd been speaking to Damon, Elena wasn't surprised; Damon was such a smart-ass sometimes.

Elena stood there, not quite sure what to do. She looked at Damon was lounging on the bed, arms behind his head, chest still bare but no longer scratched.

"I-I should go" She uttered softly, lips barely moving

"Yes, I suspect that Saint Stefan is waiting for your return so he has someone to badmouth me to" He joked, cracking a grin, she relaxed, all tension gone.

She was just about to leave when Damon appeared behind her, he slammed her against the wall, his mouth crashing onto hers, tongue colliding with hers, he bit her lip, sinking his fangs in softly, sucking to blood away. He moved his lips to her ear.

"Mio" he purred softly.

Then he was gone, and the only signs that he was ever there were the messy bed and the open window, a crows feather resting on the sill.


	9. a little note from me

A/N; _So I'm having like MEGA writer's block for this story, which is strange because I've managed to write a one-shot ( which you should soooo read, like NOW and leave me lots of nice reviews:D) But I just don't seem to have any more ideas for this story. I want to carry it on though, so give me your view on what you want to happen next; do you want to see more of the dangerous dark Damon that we all love? Do you want another Bamon interaction? (Even though I hate Bamon-_-) Do you want an upsetting Damon scene? Just tell me and I'll do my best, and try to update soon. Massive love _


	10. Chapter 9

_A/N; so, this chapter is purely Damon, no Delena interaction, no Bamon and no Stefan. Just purely our favorite, sexy vampire, going back to his old bad boy self that we love so much! Please review, they give me inspiration and determination to write some more: D_

_Who will love you? Who will fight?  
>And who will fall, far behind? - Birdy; Skinny love.<em>

Damon was mad, angry, _arrabbiato_, _seething_. He had to destroy, he had to take, he had to _feed; _he had to block out Saint Stefan, and how right about now, he probably had his hands all over Elena; his hands where Damon's had been less than half an hour ago.

After he'd left Elena and his bedroom, he'd turned into a crow and just flew. He'd flown around fells church about three times now, _same old boring, crappy small town_, he thought bitterly. _You would think that after all that's happened here, something would have changed. Obviously not. _He hated small towns, he hated Fells Church. He shone too bright to be stuck in a small town like this. He'd travelled the world and never called anywhere home; nothing appealed to him enough. But now, this town had been forced on him, he'd been forced to call it home, even though just thinking about this place made him feel claustraphobic and the backs of his knuckles itch. The whole place looked completely unremarkable, _boring, _even slightly shabby to his trained eye. You'd never guess by looking, all of the things that had happened here.

A red film seemed to be covering his vision, he couldn't get the picture of Elena and Stefan out of his head. So maybe Elena had said she loved him, but really she wasn't his, he had a small, secret part of her; the wild dangerous part. Whereas Stefan had her, body and soul; all of her, and while she was still with Saint Stefan, Damon could never really have her that way.

In some ways, he hated loving her. Hated just how much it hurt him, how much control she had over him; even more control than Catherine had, and Catherine was a vampire. He cut his thoughts off, and changed back to his human form, landing gracefully and soundlessly outside the only bar worth going to in Fells Church. It was one of the shabbiest, seediest bars he'd ever come across, and that was saying something. _Perfect. _You see Damon was all about exteremes, the finest bar or the shabbiest. A five star hotel in Paris, or the seediest motel in Soho. He didn't do mediums. He either loved you with a buring, passionate intensity, or loathed you. That was his appeal, and he knew it. He posessed a certain charm, that Saint Stefan, or anyother man for that matter, could only dream of.

He stared down at his chest for a minute, vaguelly realising that maybe he should have put a shirt on before he'd left. _Oh well, no point worrying about it now._ Without another thought, he strolled into the bar, wrinkling his nose slightly at the smell of stale beer. _Perfect._

He sat at a creaky bar stool and ordered a drink.

"Bourbon, neat"

The bartender just nodded, and started to get Damon his drink, sliding it down the bar when it was ready. Damon nocked it back, enjoying the burning feeling it left in the back of his throat. It was the closest thing he could get to Elena's blood; it had that certain kick to it, just like Elena's blood did. He signaled to the bartender for another, and then tilted his head back; surveying the room. The bar was almost empty, only a few wizened old men sat in the booths at the back. His drink arrived in front of him, and Damon automatically swallowed it in one, not even thinking about it, not really tasting it.

He was drinking to try and calm himself, to try and stop himself from doing something that he'd regret. _Hell, I wouldn't even regret it, but Elena would be so pissed, but then; so would Saint Stefan. _He smiled to himself, the thought of Saint Stefan with his panties in a bunch, pleased him.

"Hey? Can you just leave the bottle this time?"

"You sure?"

Damon merely nodded in agreement, taking the bottle from the bartender when it was handed to him. He took a hearty gulp, intending to get completely and blindly _wasted._ He wanted to feel numb, he wanted to block it all out; Elena, Stefan,_ everything. _All his pain.

After about an hour and another bottle of bourbon later, Damon was feeling deliciously numb. His head was spinning slightly, giving the bar a softer, more blurry look. He liked it. He was thinking that maybe it was time to move onto another establishment, seeing as the bartender was now outright refusing to give Damon anymore to drink, saying it would be a safety hazard. Damon had merely replied that he had always been a safety hazard, drunk or not.

He stood up unsteadily, having to catch himself on the bar stool. _Thank all the demons in hell that I'm a vampire, because otherwise, I'd probably be dead now. Again._ He walked out of the bar, tripping slightly on his feet, breathing deep gulps of freezing air as he emerged onto the street. He channeled his power around him; feeling for the place with the most auras crowded together, quickly finding it. It turned out to be a club, a club that you'd miss if you weren't familiar with Fells Church. The door was basically hidden; shrouded in darkness at the back of a seemingly abandoned building. This was defiantly Damon's kind of place.

He walked into the small, crowded area, almost fully covered in dancing bodies, packed in tightly together, submerged in the thrumming music. He walked over to the bar, shoving people out of the way, tripping over passed out people on the floor, not caring. He ordered vodka this time instead, wanting to feel more of this deliciously numb sensation. He couldn't feel anything right now, no emotions that is. He could definitely still feel something; _hunger. _He was going to bleed tonight, bleed the lovely women of Fells Church, give them the single most momentous night of their lives; Elena didn't know what she was missing.

He pushed his way back onto the crowded dance floor; letting the sound of the heady dubstep take him over, he couldn't think, couldn't _feel _and he loved it. He let his eyes refocus and started the hunt. The hunt he'd perfected over his five hundred years, the centuries of nights. There was a girl dancing next to him, staring at him, Damon was used to it. They didn't make them like him anymore, his DNA was flawless. He smiled slowly to her, the cocky, arrogant smile that made all women go weak at the knees. She smiled back, her pupils as wide a dinner plates, she was obviously high off something. Damon moved slightly to his left so he was behind her, he placed his hands on her hips, way too low to be chaste, and started to dance with her. His head was pounding with the music and he was boiling, a fine film of sweat covered his bare chest. Another girl was trying to capture his attention as well, he noticed all the signs. He smiled to himself, then flashed it to the girl, watching her eyes widen in surprise when she saw his face fully. He'd save her for later.

He buried his head into the neck of the girl he was dancing with, trying to pretend that she smelled like sunshine and summer instead of perfume and sweat. He breathed past her scent, searching for what was under her skin. It hit him like a bus, the familiar smell of blood, the thing he craved above all others. He bit down sharply, not caring if anyone could see, though he doubted it seeing how wasted everyone was in here. He drank deeply, draining her, sucking out every last drop and relishing the moment when her life force faded out of her and into him. She went limp in his arms as he licked every last drop of blood from around the puncture marks. He let the girl sink to the floor, not caring, let the humans believe that she'd passed out from too much alcohol, let them believe anything. He didn't care.

He let his eyes fall onto the girl who had been giving him the eye earlier. He pushed his way up to her and whispered ancient Italian words in her ear, watching her eyes roll as his breath hit her neck. He started to dance with her, smiling at how truly oblivious she was, oblivious that she'd be _dead_ so soon. It thrilled him. He didn't care if this woman was completely innocent, that he'd never even laid eyes on her before, he needed someone to _blame,_ he was upset and angry and someone needed to _pay. _He needed to hurt and kill and destroy, so he wasn't the only one feeling like his heart was being split in two.

He bit into this girl's neck, moaning as the hot liquid hit his throat, building him up, making him stronger. He pulled his fangs out of her, then bit down again, making the blood spill faster, stream down his throat and around his body; making him feel more alive than he had all night. All too soon the girl was drained; he dropped her body to the floor and surveyed the room. His head was spinning again; he was bloated, high off the blood and the life force he'd just consumed.

He wanted to brawl now, he wanted to fight and he wanted to kill some more. He wanted to spread pain and destruction; after all, he was _Damon Salvatore. _He moved over to a man dancing manically near him and slammed into his shoulder, sending the man sprawling.

"Hey! What the fuck man?"

"Well, 'man' I seem to have slammed into your shoulder and you fell to the floor"

The guy on the floor stood, his fists clenched, he walked over to Damon; the floor seemed to have cleared into a circle around them, people anticipating the fight that was brewing. The man threw the first punch; Damon barely felt it, so wired off the blood and life force he had stolen, was he. A low growl erupted in his throat as he threw his whole weight at the man, knocking him to the floor and showering punches at his face. His mind was only full of one thing at the moment; hate. Hate towards his bastard of a little brother and the girl who should have been, could have been his. He was on top of the man, punching everywhere he could, slamming fists into stomach, sides, _anywhere_. The man passed out quickly, which just made Damon punch him harder, angry that no one could even punch him back, make him feel something other than this deep _hurt._

A man tried to pull Damon off his victim, but Damon just batted him off, knocking him clear across the room with a sharp back hand. He wanted to fight, wanted to_ kill. _The man beneath him was dead now, this angered Damon even more, why was everyone so _weak_? Why could no one just fight back? He got up off the man, leaving him sprawled on the floor, bruised, bloody and _dead._ _It's not my problem; if I'm hurt, then they all deserve to hurt_.

He punched his way off the dance floor and out of the club, anyone who got in his way got taken down with a flick of Damon's hand. When he emerged he put his hands on his knees, head bent, breathing heavily. He flicked his head skyward, checking the sky, reading it; he guessed it was around five in the morning, judging by the colour. He was tired now, he was tired and he was hurt and he was _done._ He sunk down to the floor, leaning heavily on a wall. He was cold now as well, the frigid winter air assaulting him, making him shiver; for some odd reason, people didn't think that vampires could feel the cold. They could.

He pulled his knees up to his chest, wrapped his arms around himself and rested his head on his knees, taking in deep, shaky breaths. The numb feeling he loved so much was fading now, soon it would be completely gone and he'd have to face reality, face his demons. In a flash he was on his feet, he had to see her, had to see her _now_, even if she was asleep; he just wanted to see her face, maybe it would remind him who he was, because right now, he had no clue.

He took off into the sky, not bothering to change forms to a crow, _who cares if the human see me? I just have to see her, I _need _to see her. _He flew fast, the freezing air making his eyes stream, all of the blood he'd stolen and the lives he'd taken allowed him to push himself. He was determined now, the idea was set in his head, and he wouldn't be satisfied until he'd seen her face.

He flew straight to Stefan's bedroom window; he knew that Elena was sleeping at the boarding house tonight. The window was open. _Doesn't Stefan know what lurks in the darkness? Or more importantly, _who_? _He grinned devilishly to himself before stumbling in through the bedroom window, the alcohol chasing away his usual careless grace; the grace he'd always possessed.

He didn't move from the position he'd taken up when he'd entered through the window, his eyes were fixed upon the bed._ They_ were laying together, Stefan's arm wrapped around Elena's shoulder, her head rested upon his chest. Elena's lips were turned up in a small smile; dreams were obviously treating her well this night. His eyes drifted over to Saint Stefan, anger boiled inside Damon, red once again clouding his vision. He wanted to hurt Stefan, to _kill_ him. His primal, animalistic nature was coming out, he wanted to rip this rival away from his mate; the one person who was his equal, neither competition or food.

Damon didn't know what to do in that moment. When the anger drained away along with the alcohol in his system, leaving him reduced to nothing but a boy, a boy broken by centuries and centuries of hurt. A lost boy, the boy who watched people grow old, watched people die, watched people move on with their lives when his would forever stay in the same place. The boy who watched others love when he could not, who had lived for an eternity without a home, without a place that was his.

Damon didn't know what to do, so he did what never failed him; he turned and fled the room, leaping into the sky with a cry of pure pain.


	11. Chapter 10

_Nothing compares no worries or cares. Regrets and mistakes, they're memories made._

_Who would have known how bittersweet this would taste?_

_Adele; Someone like you._

_Dear Diary,_

_Well, my old, faithful friend, it sure has been a while since I have confided in you; I sort of gave up after Damon died. There just didn't seem to be much point anymore; anything I wrote would have been about him anyway. But I am writing to you now, my dear diary, because he's back. My Damon is home and I can finally breathe again. The excruciating hole in my chest has healed. I must confide that I am worried though, worried about Damon. He's gone again diary, not in the sense that he was before; but he's gone all the same. Last night me and Damon did things, things I've never done with anyone before and it was magical. But then Stefan came back home and like the fool I am, I went back to him; not really because I wanted to, but because it's a habit, it's comfortable, it's something I can do without thinking about. I just remember the look on his face; the look imprinted on his beautiful features just as Stefan left the room and I was about to follow. It was completely unreadable, but that didn't mean that I couldn't see the pain beneath it all. If anyone really knows Damon Salvatore- which I doubt- It's me. I _love_ Stefan, I do, but I also love Damon, so, so much. I feel ridiculous, after all the time that has passed since I met the Salvatore brothers, and all that's happened, I still write about them in this diary. About how I am so stuck in the middle and pretty soon I am going to have to choose. Is it so wrong to love two people at the same time? Yes, I guess it is._

Elena was pacing the dining room; back and forth, back and forth, awaiting Damon's return. It was early morning, about half past six, she seriously shouldn't be awake; she didn't have school tomorrow, she had no actual _reason_ to be awake, no reason other than that she was waiting for someone. As soon as she'd awoken, she'd walked to Damon's room, expecting to find him sound asleep. But he wasn't. The bed was still unmade; in the state that it had been in before he'd left last night. Nothing had changed, Damon obviously hadn't returned last night. She was worried; she _knew_ Damon had been upset and upset and Damon weren't the best combination. She was scared, sacred that he'd done something terrible, something to undo all the good work he'd done recently. Deep down she _knew_ that Damon had done something; she could _feel_ it, feel it in the otherworldly connection she had with the elder Salvatore. It was inevitable that he'd done something bad to be honest; it was the way he dealt with things.

She heard a crash coming from the kitchen, it made her nerves stand on edge, every part of her body put on alert. She stood completely still, holding her breath, waiting for the moment when this presence would reveal itself as friend of foe. She heard him before she saw him; he was humming, an unknown song; probably ancient, it made her want to know what song it was; she wanted to know everything about Damon Salvatore. He stood still when he saw her, feigning surprise and acting taken aback in an over-exaggerated way.

"Well, well, well, if it isn't Eleeeeeeeena. I would have thought you and Saint Stefan were still cozied up; you looked so _sweet, _seriously it warmed my heart" Damon slurred.

"Damon? Are you drunk? And you're upset, that isn't a very good combination"

"No Elena, I'm not upset. That would imply that I cared"

"Damon, don't lie. You can't fool me; I know you care, you care so much and I know it hurts you and I'm _sorry. _I'm sorry Damon, I don't want to hurt you, I never want to hurt you"

Damon stared at her for a long moment, different emotions were fizzling in his eyes, she saw anger, hate, jealousy and then _hurt _deep hurt and endless tiredness.

"It's been a hard day Elena, and a harder night. How about we save the big heartfelt talk for a different time"

She looked at him, _really_ looked at him, taking in his aura as well as his appearance. It was bloated, filled to the brim with power, _dark_ power. The power that only came from hate and murder. Damon had killed tonight, killed a lot. She couldn't ignore it; his aura was basically shouting it in her face, its dark tendrils almost filling the room.

"Oh Damon" She whispered "What have you done?"

"I've done what you made me do"

"Who did you kill Damon?" She asked calmly.

He stood there, not answering.

"Who Damon?" She shouted this time, battering him with her anger.

"I don't know! Did you seriously expect me to find out their names?"

She slapped him, her hand leaving a red mark on his ghostly, white cheek. She hit him next; she pummelled her fists again his chest, trying to make him react, trying to make him see sense; feel remorse, feel _anything _towards the people whose lives he had ended. She was crying now, hot salty tears streaming down her face, she felt so guilty, because she knew, in a way that Damon had been telling the truth; he had only killed because of her, because of how she'd made him feel and how much she'd hurt him.

"I hate you" She spat, annunciating all the words sharply. Her hands were still resting on his chest.

"I hate you too"

He pulled her to him, slamming his body against her and crushing their lips together. He kissed her violently, angrily; his fingers squeezing her upper arms, she anticipated the bruises that would flower her flesh in the morning. He lifted her off her feet, pushing her down on the dining room table, climbing on top of her. His hands how squeezed the backs of her thighs, travelling upwards until they reached her buttocks.

His lips moved off hers, travelling to her cheek; nipping the skin softly. A moan left Elena's lips as his continued to nibble and kiss his way down from her cheek to her neck. She anticipated the sting of his fangs before it came; it hurt more than usual, and she didn't doubt that Damon did that deliberately, wanting to give her back some of the pain that she had caused him.

He drank her blood greedily, swallowing great gulps, drinking more and more until Elena felt herself slipping, her life force fading. She knew that letting Damon have her blood was dangerous when he was in this type of mood, there was a high chance that he could lose control and drain her completely, but she couldn't deny him. A whimper escaped her lips and that was what it took for Damon to retract his fangs out of her. She felt dizzy and sore; she also felt like she deserved to feel this. It took her a while before she could meet his eyes but when she did, Damon looked at her, his black eyes unfathomable.

"I'm sorry" He whispered, white around his lips.

"No, _I'm _sorry. I shouldn't have run back to Stefan, not after what we did"

"It hurt"

His words were so simple, and in most cases not an excuse at all. But in this case, they were. They were all the excuse Damon Salvatore needed. She pulled him to her; he felt thin and tired in her arms. She placed a kiss on his forehead, before taking his hand and leading him up the stairs; to Damon's bedroom.

When Damon entered the room, she closed the door behind them, she felt like she was closing the rest of the world out. She pulled him to her once again and he bent down; resting his head on her shoulder. She stroked his back softly, soothing him; he buried his head into her neck, breathing in her comforting scent. She pulled away, took his hand, and led him to the bed.

She sat down, crossed her legs and pulled Damon to rest his head in her lap; she then pulled the blanket over their heads, leaving them in their own world. Damon closed his eyes, relaxing in the comfort that her presence gave him. Elena threaded her fingers into Damon's silky hair; running her fingers through it and tugging it softly. She whispered his name softly, noticing the slight smile that graced his pout as she did.

She started to sing softly, a lullaby that her mother used to sing to her when she woke up in the night with nightmares. Damon nestled his head further into her lap, moulding himself into her, as she continued to stroke his hair and sing softly to him, the words slipping out of her mouth as easy as breathing. She knew Damon was almost asleep, she could sense it in his aura; she stopped singing for a second then whispered to him, ever so softly.

"I love you, I love you, I love you, I love you, I love you, I love you, I love you, I love you, I love you, I love you, I love you, I love you"

Sometimes the line between love and hate blurs so much that it becomes undistinguishable.


	12. Chapter 11

_And when we meet, which I'm sure we will. All that was there will be there still, I'll let it pass and hold my tongue, and you will think that I've moved on.- Dido; White Flag._

It had been two days since Elena and Damon's argument; two days since Elena had sung Damon to sleep, watched his eyes flutter shut and gazed at the small smile that had graced his perfect mouth. She hadn't seen him yesterday, she'd left Damon a little while after he'd fallen asleep; shifted his head gently off her lap and tucked the blankets up to his chin, placing a soft kiss on each of his closed eyelids. When she went to check on him a few hours later, she found that Damon was gone, the bed left un-made; of course. If she told the truth, she sort of knew that he would be gone when she checked on him; her and Damon had shared something, she'd seen him at his most vulnerable and Elena knew that Damon wasn't ready to let his walls down completely yet; even if she did _really _want him to.

It was 7:30 in the morning now and she had school. Stefan didn't go anymore; he didn't really see the point, seeing as he was over five hundred years old and had completed high school several times already, also the only reason he'd _really_ even started at Robert was to watch _her._ Elena sipped the coffee in her mug, grimacing at the now lukewarm liquid; she really should get going, go to school, but it all just seemed so trivial; after the events of the past two days.

Elena felt breath on her neck; warm breath softly tickling the hairs on the back of her neck, making them stand on end. She spun around and found herself gazing into the raven orbs that she loved so much.

"Damon" She whispered softly, not even trying to hide the smile that found its way onto her face.

"Who else?" He whispered back, his sweet breath tickling her face.

"I missed you yesterday, where did you go?" She regretted asking it as soon as the words left her lips, she didn't _wan_t to sound possessive and needy, but with Damon she _was_ both of those things.

"Oh, you know. Here and there" He said, that wicked, white lightning smile crossing his features.

Elena couldn't stop herself from smiling back at him, whenever Damon was happy; his emotions were so strong that Elena got dragged into his happiness as well.

"What? No good morning kiss?" He joked, his smile widening into the one that he only gave to her.

She punched him softly on his upper arm, but leaned up on her tip toes and placed a soft kiss to his lips. She was about to pull away and lean down back onto flat feet when Damon placed his hands on her waist and pulled her to him, lifting her off her feet and deepening the kiss. Elena locked her arms around his neck even tighter and allowed him to slip his tongue into her mouth. They stayed like that for what felt like eternity, until Elena had to pull away to breathe. Damon placed her back on her feet, his arms still wrapped around her waist, head buried into her hair.

"Damon, I have to go. I have school"

He moaned softly in protest, bringing her even closer to him and placing soft kisses on her neck.

"Damon!" She giggled "Really, I have to go!"

He pulled his head out of her neck, and looked her in the eyes, a boyish grin appearing on his perfect face.

"Okay, but I'll take you. It gives me more time with you"

"Are you sure? Do you even still have a car?"

"Yes and yes. That's what I did yesterday, I went car shopping" he was grinning like a young boy, who just got a new toy.

"Thank you" She said, grinning at just how perfect Damon Salvatore actually was. She felt on top of the world at this moment, she thought about just how much she'd dreamed about her and Damon being together like this, in the past few weeks. While she'd thought he was dead.

He took her hand, kissed it softly, and then laced their fingers together, leading her to the door. She grabbed her tote and then closed the door behind them. Damon led them down the street a little bit then stopped.

"Close your eyes" he whispered softly in her ear.

Elena did as he said and shut her eyes; he took her hand and led her the rest of the way down the street. When he said it was okay, she opened them, and found herself staring at a gorgeous, midnight blue, vintage Ferrari. Her eyes bulged slightly, it was _beautiful. _She couldn't even begin to imagine how much this had cost him.

"So, do you like it?" he laughed softly in her ear.

"Damon, it's beautiful!"

"Yes, you are"

She turned around and placed a soft kiss on his lips, revelling in how perfect this moment was. In this moment there were no vampires, no death, no other brothers; all there was, was Damon and Elena, a boy and girl so in love. Damon scooped Elena up, bridal style and chucked her in the passenger seat of the car, grinning as Elena screamed and laughed, then pretended to pout. He ran around to the driver's side then jumped in. He did Elena's seat belt up for her, placing a kiss on her cheek, then revved the engine; making Elena laugh even more.

They shot down the road, Damon driving three times the speed limit, their hair being whipped out behind them in the roofless car. Elena switched on the radio, and Muse blared out of the speakers full blast. Damon took a hand off the steering wheel, and laced his fingers with Elena's, who tipped her head back, smiling in contentment. She was so happy in this moment, she was going to remember right now forever; she was going to remember just happy she felt, exactly how Damon looked and the way a carefree smile sat on his face, making him look so young and so unbelievably gorgeous.

She found herself not wanting to arrive at school, not wanting to face Bonnie, Meredith and Matt, particularly _Bonnie;_ who would no doubt swamp her with questions about Damon, questions that Elena was not willing to provide answers to. She was brought out of her daydream by Damon, who squeezed her hand and grinned at her; immediately all her worries flew away as he flashed that beautiful, wild smile at her. She melted. The small, country-like lanes were turning into larger roads now, filled with cars; causing Damon to slow down by a margin so he didn't draw attention to them. They were approaching the school now, and Elena sagged slightly in her seat, her good mood dissolving a little as the building came into view. School meant reality and reality meant Stefan and the choice she was going to have to make oh so soon.

Damon brought the car to a stop at the front of the school building and turned to face Elena, a wicked grin on his face.

"How about a kiss? Just one, to last me through the day"

"Damon, people might see, people might tell Stefan"

"I don't give a damn about Stefan"

He pulled her to him, crushing her lips and her protests with his. She closed her eyes and blocked out the school and the rest of the world for that matter, melting into Damon. All too soon he pulled away, but still kept hold of her hand, stroking it softly as if sensing her fears and trying to sooth them away. He flashed her that smile again, _her_ smile, and pulled away slightly.

"You have a good day dear" he said cheekily, unsuccessfully holding in a laugh, which escaped his lips and produced the most beautiful sound she'd ever heard. She couldn't help but smile and laugh as well, swept up in his adorable, playful, happy mood. He dropped a last kiss on her cheek before climbing out of the car, walking round to her side, and opening the door for her. Everyone was staring, girls with jealous looks at Elena and flirty looks at Damon and boys, seizing up Damon, death glares on their faces. She noticed that none of the boys seemed to be about to challenge him, she wasn't surprised; Damon's aura emitted a strong dark power that seemed to scream at people that he could rip their throats out and not even think twice about it.

"Thank you Damon" She said softly, gazing into his eyes.

"_Anything_ for you princess"

He then turned, got back into the car and drove away, leaving Elena to face a whole day without him. She missed him already and he'd only just drove off, she watched the car speed away and down the road, watching until he turned the corner and was out of sight. She sighed and started to walk towards the building where she was immediately swamped by girls asking about Damon.

"Who was_ he_ Elena? He was gorgeous!"

"How do you know him?"

"Does he have a girlfriend?"

"Are _you_ his girlfriend?"

"No, that's ridiculous, Elena's dating Stefan. Right Elena?"

On and on it went, them firing questions at her and her not answering or, if she did, it was with a nod or a slight shake of her head. Eventually the bell rang and she escaped from the mob, walking to her first lesson; calculus, with_ Bonnie. _The lesson passed fairly quickly; Bonnie greeted her coolly when she walked into the room, then the questions about Damon started, _how is he? Is he well? Does he remember anything? Does he remember _me_? _Bonnie fired questions at her relentlessly, and Elena found herself happy when the teacher came in and they couldn't talk anymore. She didn't want to discuss Damon with _anyone, _least of all Bonnie.

The day seemed to drag by, with nothing interesting happening until her lesson before lunch; European History. She was interested in the lesson as soon as Mr Jones mentioned the Renaissance, Damon and Stefan's faces immediately popped into her head, as did the face of Catherine; that was when it had all happened, that was when Damon and Stefan's lives had ended. Mr Jones started talking about schooling in the Renaissance period, particularly universities; Hadn't Damon gone to university for a small while, until he got kicked out for drinking and gambling?, she suppressed a smile at the thought of people trying to make Damon abide by rules. She listened avidly throughout the whole lesson, enjoying getting a glimpse of what life was like for Damon and Stefan before they were turned.

After that lesson she went to lunch, where she made awkward conversation with Bonnie; mainly about Damon, and spoke to Meredith about what she'd been doing lately, while Elena had been at the boarding house, which wasn't a lot. When the end of day bell rang Elena practically ran out of school and was struck speechless at the sight of the world's most beautiful boy leaning against his Ferrari waiting for her. A stupidly big smile appeared on her face as her eyes rested on Damon, he was gracefully slouching against the car, one hand behind his back and the other rested on the car, stroking it softly, Elena suppressed a laugh as she thought of Damon and his new toy. There were people crowded around him, girls staring flirtily and flipping their hair and boys admiring the Ferrari from a safe distance.

Damon's eyes locked with hers and he waved; one hand still behind his back. She swiftly walked over to him where he gave her a special smile, a secret smile, one filled with mischief and life. He brought the hand that he held behind his back out and he was holding the world's most beautiful rose, but it wasn't just any rose; it was a black magic, the closest anyone had ever got to breeding a true black rose. To anyone else it would just seem like he was giving her a rose; a cute, meaningless gift, but Elena knew better; knew the sentiment and memories behind that simple rose. She smiled softly to him, letting her eyes send the true message; one of endless appreciation and love.

She took the rose and he opened the passenger door of the car for her without saying a word. He climbed in soundlessly and began to effortlessly manoeuvre the car out of the parking lot. As soon as they were a distance away from the school, she took his hand, squeezing it. He turned his head to face her and brought her hand to his lips, kissing it softly. He turned his head back and concentrated on the road, Elena openly stared at him, shocked by just how much she loved him; she would do absolutely _anything_ for Damon Salvatore, she'd give up anything for him, even Stefan, even anything, even her life. She'd already done that really though, given up her life for him. She was happy that she had; she was happy that she'd died that night with Catherine instead of Damon, she was happy that for once _she_ was the one who had saved _him_, because he was _always_ saving her, in more ways than one.

She looked down at the rose resting in her lap, and thought of how many memories came to mind just looking at the rose. She saw her and Damon in the Old Wood, when he was possessed by Shinichi, when she'd offered him her blood and she'd got drunk instantly off the dark, fragrant wine. She remembered a boiling day in the middle of nowhere, when they'd been travelling to the Dark Dimension to find Stefan, the day Damon had given her a Black Magic rose, the first Black Magic rose she had ever received, she'd made some realizations that day; realizations about Damon. The rose was like Damon in a sense; dark and beautiful, tragic in a way, but also prickly, like the stem. Damon was as wild as a Black Magic rose.

A beautiful voice broke her out of the trance she was in.

"I would offer you a penny for your thoughts, but I'm broke" He laughed indulgently.

"So if you're broke, how did you afford this car?"

"I didn't have to afford it, it was a gift"

"A gift from whom?" She laughed, sensing the answer before it came.

"She was called Sandra I think" He laughed and she joined in, loving the sound of Damon's laugh, it was like Stefan's in a sense, but without the bitter edge. When Damon laughed he truly meant it, he lit up the room with the delightful chuckle that escaped his lips.

Damon stopped the car and before she could open her door, Damon was there opening it for her, bowing like a gentleman.

"My lady" He grinned cheekily.

He came up behind her and slung her over his shoulder, Elena beat against his back with her fists, not really trying to get free. Damon slapped her softly on her butt, producing a scream of protest off Elena, which didn't come out as serious as she would have liked because she was also crying with laughter. She buried her head into his strong back, breathing in the familiar scent of his black polo shirt.

Damon opened the door one-handed causing it to slam against the wall, which just made Elena laugh harder. Damon stopped in his tracks. Elena lifted her head up and tried to see in front of her, tried to see what Damon was seeing, what had caused him to stop so suddenly. But she couldn't.

"Damon, what's wrong?"

"Elena" The word was strained and it did not come from Damon's lips. The voice belonged to Stefan.


	13. Chapter 12

_And now you're gonna miss me, I know you're gonna miss me, I guarantee you miss me; because you changed the way you kiss me.- Example; Changed the way you kiss me._

"Elena" Stefan said again, his voice strained.

Elena didn't reply, all she wanted to do way burry her head into Damon's back and breathe in his familiar scent, hiding from the world. But she couldn't. No, she had to face the music. They'd been caught in the act so to speak, this was it; this was the moment that she was going to have to choose, they moment that she had been delaying for so long was finally here. She was so afraid, even more afraid than she'd been the night that she had died.

She wanted Damon to put her down, she had to face the music, face Stefan and take the consequences. She tried to pull out of Damon's grip but he kept his arm securely around her, He was standing completely still, frozen like a statue and Elena could tell that he was staring at Stefan, probably giving him a death glare. All three of them were completely silent, none of them really knew what to say; I mean what does one say at a moment like this; _Sorry Stefan but I seem to have fallen in love with your brother?_ It just sounded so lame, so weak.

Damon finally released his grip on her and placed her back on her feet, positioning her so she was behind him, shielding her from Stefan, as if he was protecting his mate. The silence continued, almost deafening in its harshness. The only thing that could be heard was the tick of the clock in the background. Damon was the first to break the silence.

"Well, this is an interesting situation we have found ourselves in"

"Damon" Stefan growled "What were you doing to _my_ girlfriend?"

"She's not _your_ anything _brother" _Damon growled back

"What and you think she's _yours_? Seriously Damon? It's exactly the same as it was with Catherine, sure you're good for fun and laughs but in the long run, the women will never choose you. You're just not reliable enough for a relationship. You can never be what Elena needs, she needs _me_, you're never going to win her Damon"

Damon's fists clenched, she could see his nails digging into his palms, drawing drops of his dark red blood. Elena wanted to do nothing better than to just kiss his cheek, whisper in his ear that it would be okay, tell him that she would love him forever, _only_ him.

"I may not be reliable, but at least I know how to show the woman I love a good time, at least I know how to show them_ life_ to show them what love should be like, not just the dull approximation you show them"

"I love Elena with all my heart, love that someone like you could never understand" He spoke to Elena next "Elena, do you really think he loves you, seriously? This is _Damon_ we're talking about, he lives in the darkness Elena, he's _evil_"

Elena didn't respond, her blood boiling at Stefan's words, the poisonous lies he was trying to spin her. How dare he say that Damon didn't love her, how dare he imply that Damon could not love, when Damon had shown her more love in the past couple of days, than Stefan had shown her in their whole relationship. Little lovely love? That didn't mean anything, that wasn't _love_. It was like the love between a father and his daughter, not the raw passion she craved. Not the possessive, angry, crazy love that existed between her and Damon.

"Don't" Damon uttered in a way that sent danger alarms wailing in Elena's head "Don't say that I don't love Elena. You may be right about some things Stefan, but on this you are so unbelievably wrong" Damon spat the words at Stefan, his voice lowered to a dangerous rasp.

Elena noticed that Damon and Stefan were standing nose to nose now, exactly the same height, Damon slighter and leaner than Stefan. Their eyes were locked on one another and Elena knew they were going to brawl, even before the first punch was thrown, she could see it in their eyes. Cold fury was clouding everything for them both. Elena felt a gut wrenching sadness at this, how she'd ripped them apart even more, where Catherine had already split the seams, Elena had finished then job and torn them completely apart.

Stefan threw the first punch, putting the full force of his weight behind the punch, slamming Damon backwards. Damon didn't even feel it, he grabbed Stefan by the throat, lifted him up and threw him against the wall, where Stefan crumpled to the ground. Damon quickly flew up to him and jumped him, slamming his fists into Stefan, making the ground shake with the force of his punches. Damon lifted him up again and threw him against the stairs; Elena heard the wood splinter beneath Stefan. She saw the cold fury in his eyes and she knew at that moment, that if she did not stop Damon, he would kill Stefan, kill him and not even think about it. She could not let that happen. Not let the brothers do that to each other again. Destroy their already fragmented relationship beyond repair.

"Damon! Damon, stop!"

He paid no attention, just kept slamming his fists into Stefan's already bruised and bloody face.

"Damon! Come on Damon, please? You don't have to do this, you don't have to kill him, he's your brother Damon! Please? Please, just stop!"

Damon paused mid-punch, and then slumped, shoulders slouched and head bowed. He looked so tired and just so defeated that Elena's heart broke. He staggered down the last few stairs then collapsed at the bottom, knees to his chest and his head tilted back on the wall, eyes shut. She saw the pain in his face, the pain and sadness that clouded his beautiful features. She glanced quickly at Stefan, who was out cold on the stairs, his face swollen and bruised. She walked over to Damon and kneeled in front of him, placing a kiss on his forehead and stroking his hair, he leaned into her and she wrapped her arms around his slight frame. He buried his head into her neck, hiding himself from the world. They sat like that for what seemed like hours; Elena cradling Damon, who had his head nestled into her neck. He eventually pulled away and looked her in the eyes.

"I'm sorry" He whispered, sounding like the lost, little boy that Elena knew deep down he still was.

"It's okay Damon. I'm proud of you. You could have killed him but you didn't. You did so well Damon"

He stood and walked over to Stefan, wincing as he saw the damage he had caused him. He lifted him up and carried him up the stairs, placing him on the bed when they reached Stefan's room. Elena, who had followed him up the stairs, slipped her hand into his as they stood there surveying the damage done to Stefan. Elena couldn't block out the feeling that all this was her fault; she was the one who had driven the brothers to this; drove them to hurt each other.

"Do you think some of my blood would help him?" She questioned Damon tentatively.

"Yes, it would help"

"I'll give him some then- just enough to cure his injuries"

Damon nodded then brought their joined hands to his lips, where he kissed Elena's wrist then sank his fangs in, drawing two perfect drops of blood. Elena kneeled next to the bed, by Stefan's head and positioned her wrist above his mouth, angling it so that to blood dripped in. The effect was almost instantaneous, the cuts on Stefan's face started to close up and he started to suck her wrist, sinking his fangs in, Elena gave an involuntary gasp of pain, which caused Damon to lock his eyes upon Stefan in a repeat of his earlier death glare.

Stefan started to regain consciousness and Elena tried to pry her wrist away from him, which just caused Stefan to grab it and latch his lips onto it even harder. A low growl erupted from Damon's chest and he walked up to Elena grabbed her wrist precisely and pried it away from Stefan's lips, which caused Stefan to moan in protest.

Now Stefan was waking, Damon saw no point in waiting by his side like a concerned mother. The way Damon saw it, after today, his and Stefan's relationship was over, _done._ He'd had it up to here with Stefan's whiney-ass attitude and general patheticness. He was over it. Over trying to have a normal relationship with Stefan, not that he'd really craved one. No, it had always been Stefan who had followed him, trying to fit in with him, not getting it that Damon wasn't even slightly interested in anything to do with Stefan, well, anything but Elena. Her, he was definitely interested in.

He slumped on his bed, kicked his shoes off then pulled the blankets up over his head, creating his own world between the sheets. He closed his eyes and his life seemed to flash around his head; his mother becoming ill after giving birth to Stefan and dyeing a few years later, going to university and discovering the demon drink, gambling and women, he saw Catherine, the first time they had ever met, he saw Catherine and Stefan holding hands looking like the perfect couple. He saw himself murdering Stefan and then saw Stefan ram his blade through his heart. He saw the years and years that he'd been completely lost, just living in the moment, drinking and dancing the years away, while secretly dying inside. He then saw him and Elena and all their time together. He saw himself die again, his and Elena's last moments together.

He was exhausted, he was upset and he was _done, _at least for today anyway. All he wanted to do was let sleep claim him, let the blackness drag him into its velvety depths; Damon had always felt most comfortable in darkness, he revelled in it. He gave a last sigh, then drifted off into a dreamless sleep.


	14. Chapter 13

_Just tonight I will stay and we'll throw it all away, when the light hits your eyes, it's telling me I'm right and if I, I am through, then it's all because you. Just tonight. Just tonight. Do you understand who I am, do you wanna know? Can you really see through me now, I'm about to go. But just tonight I won't leave, I'll lie and you'll believe, just tonight I will see, that it's all because of me._

_-Just tonight; The Pretty Reckless._

Damon awoke to arms around him, a small body pressed up against his; cradling him. A sweet voice; the voice of an angel was whispering sweet nothings in his ear._ It's okay Damon, I love you, I promise I'll never let him say things like that to you again, I love you, I love you, I love you, I love you. _The words were sweet enough, and generally one should feel happy if they had someone whispering like that in their ear. It was just that something sounded off about the words, they just seemed to cause him more pain; more pain because, although he knew the words being whispered to him were _true, _he just felt that it was so unfair that the one whispering so sweetly to him, belonged to another. It hurt him because the women who loved him the most always seemed to belong to someone else. They would never be his, not _really _and it killed him. He twisted around to face Elena, who smiled sadly at him.

"You're awake"

"Yeah, how long was I asleep?"

"I don't know, I only just came in from looking after Stefan, he's conscious again"

He hated the way his brother's name slipped so naturally from her lips, it sounded right; like that name was the one she was supposed to be saying; the name she was supposed to shout, moan, cry, whisper and state. He wished _his_ name sounded like that coming from her lips. But it never did. His name never sounded like that coming from anyone's lips. He stared out of the window, not wanting to look at Elena. It was raining outside, the heavens were crying. The rain was lashing down against the windows in violent pelts. It looked so inviting to Damon; he'd always loved the rain. He wanted to be out it in, he didn't want to be here; in this room that had never really felt like his, with the one girl he really _wanted_ to be his.

"Damon, are you okay?" Elena whispered softly.

Damon looked away from the window and to her face. He hated seeing the sadness and pity that sat in her lapis lazuli eyes, he didn't want her to be sad, didn't want her to pity him.

"Let's not talk about it Elena" He said, warning her slightly with his eyes. Now wasn't the time, he wasn't in a mood for sharing, for spilling his heart out to the one person who had the power to break it.

"Yes Damon, let's talk about it. We need to; you need to open up to me, share things with me, and let me help you"

"Could you just back off?" Elena flinched slightly at this outburst; he hadn't meant to shout, not _really_, he just felt so trapped right now. He didn't want to be here with her, because it just made it even more painful remembering that she wasn't his, that her love also belonged to another.

He wanted her so damn _badly_ and if he liked her even just slightly less he would just_ take_ her. Force her to choose him over Stefan and let him take her away. But he could never do that to Elena, he wanted her to choose him, no compulsion, no threats, no nothing. He wanted her to choose him for him, because he was better when he was with her, because she was the only thing that kept him from plunging headfirst into the darkness.

"Damon, please, just talk to me" Elena said quietly.

Damon sighed, why could she not just leave him alone? He didn't want to talk about his feelings; he didn't want to let his walls down right now. He wasn't in the mood for the big heartfelt talk that Elena was inevitably going to force on him soon. He sat up and swung his feet off the bed, shoving his Converse on; he had to get out of here, he had to get away from his pathetic brother and the girl he wanted more than anything else. He stood and ran out of the room with his vampire speed before Elena could do anything more than frown confusedly.

He was out of the house and down the small deserted lane in less than 20 seconds. The rain lashed down on him, pelting his head. He ran a hand through his now drenched hair and slicked it back, pushing the dripping tendrils out of his eyes. He tipped his head back to the heavens and let the icy rain pour down on his face. His black polo shirt was sticking to him now, clinging to his body like a second skin. He breathed in deep gulps of fresh wintry air and was alarmed to feel _warm_ water trickling down his cheeks. He swiped furiously at the tears that now clouded his eyes, threatening to spill over.

He roared into the deafening sound of the rain, almost drowning him out completely. The tears were coming hot and fast now, trickling down his face in a constant stream. His body was wracked with sobs, sobs for how Stefan had made him feel and how even though Damon hated to admit it, there had been some truth to his words. He sobbed for Elena and how he just wanted her so much and he felt that he would never be enough for her. But most of all, he sobbed for himself, for the boy who had lost absolutely everything and had always felt like her was second best to his bastard of a little brother.

He didn't hear her approach, the rain was so loud. He didn't noticed her at all until he felt a small, warm hand touch him softly on the shoulder, he spun around faster than Elena could take in, he grabbed her wrists, as though expecting a threat. It was always a risk to touch Damon when his back was turned; there was always a chance that he would snap her neck. His stance relaxed a little when he saw it was her, but he kept hold of her wrists, his hands slipping into hers. A slightly manic look settles on his beautiful face. Elena's eyes flew over him, taking in his shirt clinging tightly to his slim frame and muscles, his midnight hair turned even darker now it was wet was slicked back and his skin was shining as light reflected off the raindrops that sat on his cheeks. He looked like a god.

Damon felt an unbelievable need to say something, to say_ it_ now. He had to tell her, tell her how much he loved her. He had to know, he had to know right now if Elena loved him like she said she did, he had to know if once again he was only going to be second best or whether this time he was finally going to win the one thing he desired above all.

"Elena, I love you so, so much. I've never loved before, not like this, not even with Catherine. I need you to know, I just need you to hear me say it. I want you Elena, I want you so _bad_. I need you, and I need to know, I need to know that I'm not the only one of us who feels this way, I need to know if you feel this two"

"Damon, I _love_ you. You have to see it, every breath I take is for you; I _live_ for you. I'll love you forever; I'll love you until my last breath"

"Then marry me. Marry me Elena Gilbert, maybe not soon, maybe not for a hundred years, but say you'll be mine. Come away with me Elena, come away with me and forget them all. Let me show you the world. I can show you things you've only thought possible in your fantasies, I can make you feel things that no one else can make you feel. All you have to do is say yes, just say _yes_"

"Damon…"

Her head was whirling, everything she wanted was so close, and all she had to do was say yes. Then why was she hesitating? She loved Damon more than anything in the world, she was just scared, scared because she saw the manic look in his eyes, scared because she thought that Damon might change his mind, that to him, all this was just a spur of the moment decision, that after the events of the day, Damon wasn't thinking straight and he might regret this.

"Just say yes. Just say yes and this can be our defining moment, you see, that's the beauty of eternity; we have the time, we may not get married for a hundred years or a thousand, but we have the time, we have the time to _live_. This could be our defining moment, if you say yes; we can be together for eternity"

"Yes" The word escaped her lips on a breath, a whisper that Damon would not have heard if he were human.

He crushed her lips with his, he kissed her furiously, he kissed her like this was the last kiss they would ever share, he kissed her like a dying man saying goodbye to his love. His tongue slipped past her yielding lips and tangled with hers, exploring every millimetre of her mouth. Elena's arms snaked around Damon's neck and he grabbed her waist, pulling her to him and lifting her off her feet. They kissed in the rain, God's tears pelting down onto the lovers head's. The wind and rain lashed around them, but Damon and Elena were oblivious to anything except each other.

Damon was soaring on the inside; this was it, he'd finally got the one thing he wanted most in the world. He'd finally won, she was his. He would never let her go; he promised himself then; that he would never leave her, never stop loving her. He would tell her every day, just how beautiful she was and how much he loved her. He would give her the world and never ask for anything in return except for her love, and only when they'd been together for eternity and had walked the Earth one hundred times over, when they were finally tired and ready to sleep forever, would they take their rings off and kiss as they bathed in their final sunrise.

Damon finally pulled away so Elena could catch her breath, they were both shivering; soaked through to the skin, but neither could feel the cold. How could someone be cold when they had their love's arms wrapped around them? Damon gazed into Elena's eyes, his midnight black meeting her lapis lazuli blue, Damon's eyes showed thankfulness, happiness and never-ending, eternal love. He sent her a message with his eyes, he told her how ecstatic he was that she was his, how he'd wanted this for such a long time and now his fantasies had finally come true. Elena kissed him so softly on his lips as a response, and Damon knew that they understood each other perfectly. They always had.

"Run away with me" He breathed, not wanting the break the spell that they had weaved between them. "Run away with me now, let's just leave. Leave Stefan and all of this behind. Just you and me, this is our chance"

"_Anything_, anything for you"

Damon laced his finger with Elena's and they ran, racing through the storm, laughing and screaming as they skidded in puddles, often pulling each other in for passionate kisses. When they finally reached Damon's Ferrari, he lifted her up and sat her on the hood, standing between her spread knees; he kissed her, nibbling her lower lip, rain streaming down their cheeks. When they finally got in the car, they were laughing and shivering, ecstatically happy, high off their love for each other and anticipation for what they were going to do.

Elena leaned in and Damon rested his forehead against hers looking her directly in her eyes. He placed his lips against hers, sharing his breath with her, just like they'd done so long ago in that seedy motel in the middle of nowhere. Damon gazed into Elena's eyes and whispered a promise onto her lips.

"Forever"

_A/N; Sooooo, tell me what you think! I spent like ages on this chapter; I just seriously wanted to get it just right for you all. Review it, they give me inspiration to update quicker. I love you all._


	15. Chapter 14

_Feel it coming in the air and the screams from everywhere, I'm addicted to the thrill; it's a dangerous love affair. - Rihanna; Run this town._

Damon stared out of the windscreen of the car. The rain was pelting down still and lightning occasionally lit up the sky, the only light there had been for hours. Despite the unhappy weather, Damon had a massive smile on his face; a smile that just would not seem to disappear. He was smiling because the girl of his dreams was laying asleep on the backseats of the car, his jacket serving as a blanket. The girl who had only hours before, agreed to run away with him and eventually become his wife. _Elena_ was going to become his wife. He was so lucky, easily the luckiest man on Earth, to have this _angel _agree to be his for eternity. The only thing that was slightly off about his mood was his agitation about the fact that she did not yet have a ring on her finger; the proposal had not exactly been planned, but it was easily the best choice he had ever made. So that was why he was driving through this deserted town at three in the morning instead of taking Elena to a motel so she could sleep move comfily. He was going ring shopping.

He drove down the deserted high street and watched the shops that were passing, he was looking for a jewellers. _Aha. Perfect_. He brought the car to a stop a couple of metres away from the Tiffany's sitting proudly in the middle of the parade of shops. He leaned into the back of the car and placed a kiss on Elena's forehead.

"I love you" He couldn't get over that fact that he could now say that to her whenever he wanted.

He stared at her sleeping form for a moment longer, brushed a stray blonde tendril off her forehead then left the car, clicking it locked as he walked away. He slunk around to the back of the shop and soundlessly broke in, careful not to trip off the burglar alarm. He walked into the security office and shut down all of the cameras, he_ really_ couldn't be bothered with compelling jumped up policemen. He stalked through to the front of the store, his eyes surveying the shiny jewellery until his gaze rested upon the rings; Elena's ring had to be _perfect_, just like her. He walked over to them, his hands resting on the glass case that they sat in. There was a massive assortment, from flashy rubies set in gold to onyx encased in silver, but nothing seemed quite _right. _He was about to give up and find somewhere else, when his gaze rested on a plain white gold band with a tiny diamond set in it; it was_ beautiful_. He could see Elena wearing this ring, it was perfection.

He pulled out his wallet and took out the five-hundred dollars that he had sitting in there; he didn't want to steal Elena's wedding ring, he couldn't remember the last thing he'd actually _bought, _he was happy that Elena's ring was practically the first thing he'd spent money on since becoming a vampire. He had cheaper ways of acquiring the things he needed. He stuffed the money in the cash register, then swiftly walked out of the shop; eager to get back to Elena. He ran through the storm, unlocking the car ahead of him; when he got inside and had shut the door, he once again leaned towards the backseat. He gently took Elena's left hand in his and slipped the ring onto her wedding finger, smiling at how it fit perfectly and how at home it looked sitting on her finger. He dropped a kiss on her hand, before starting the car and heading back out into the torrential rain.

His next mission was to get Elena to a half-decent motel where she could have a good night's sleep. She'd fallen asleep about three hours ago in the front seat, Damon had tried to make her more comfortable by moving her into the backseat and covering her with his jacket, but he didn't like seeing her cramped back there, he didn't want the first night of the rest of their lives to be like this. He drove for another half hour before he came across a motel. He parked up then gently shook Elena awake, she moaned in protest before her eyes flickered open, her frown became a smile instantly when she saw him.

"Hey you" She said softly, a small smile sitting on her lips.

"You sleep okay beautiful?"

"Mmmmhmmm" She replied softly as she stretched her arms above her head.

"I found us a motel, we're gonna have to run through the storm first though, you ready?"

She nodded, and then slipped on his leather jacket, pulling the hood up. She took Damon's hand and he pulled her out of the car, running through the downpour and locking the car behind them as they ran. They stumbled into the make-shift lobby sopping wet and shivering from the frigid air. Damon wrapped his arm around Elena's shoulders; pulling her in close to him in an attempt to warm her up.

"Your best room. Free of charge" He compelled the woman at the front desk, flashing her the white lightning smile that made all women go weak at the knees.

"Sure" She replied, handing him the key then leaning forward flirtily "Room 45, if you need _anything_, don't be afraid to come down here and ask me"

Elena grabbed her hand and practically dragged him away; he couldn't keep the smile off his face at her blatantly jealous behaviour. She had the cutest little frown settled on her face and a possessive glint in her eyes. He let her continue to lead him down the corridors of the motel until they reached room 45. He lazily unlocked the door and turned the light on, grimacing slightly at the beige interior, it was so _boring, _but at least it would only have to do for tonight. He wasn't going to be picky right now; when he could see that Elena was almost falling asleep where she stood. He closed the door behind them and pulled Elena into an embrace, resting his chin on her head and running his hands up her back. He dropped a kiss on her forehead and then let her free, walking towards the bathroom.

"'Lena, I'm gonna go and have a shower. You can just go to sleep if you want, you don't have to wait up"

"Damon, I don't have any pyjamas" She laughed softly, remaining in the same spot.

Damon thought to himself for a minute before an idea struck him. He pulled his black polo shirt off and threw it to her.

"Wear this, I'll just go topless" He smirked, winking at her, enjoying the blush that crept onto Elena's cheeks.

He walked into the bathroom, closing the door behind him. He kicked the rest of his clothes off and stepped into the shower, grimacing once more as the water ran cold all over his body. He washed quickly with the motel's shower gel and washed his hair with the motel's shampoo; if he was to describe the way they smelled, he would say _beige, _boring and forgettable. He quickly towled himself off and pulled his boxers back on, eager to get under the warm covers with his angel. When he got back into the room, Elena was sitting up in the double bed with her had held out in front of her; admiring her ring. Damon blushed slightly, suddenly anxious as to whether she would like it or not. He wanted it to be perfect. She looked up at him, her eyes meeting his. The love that resided in them shook him to the bone, and he thought that maybe; just maybe, she loved him _almost_ as much as he loved her.

"Damon, it's perfect. When did you buy it?"

"When you were asleep, do you like it?" He asked her anxiously.

"Oh Damon, I love it" She breathed, gazing into his smouldering black eyes.

Her eyes flicked over his body now, realising that he was standing in front of her, nearly naked. Her eyes went down from his perfect face to stare at his upper body, taking in his slightly ribby perfect six-pack, taught white skin sitting on defined muscles. Her breath caught at the trail of hair that disappeared into his black Calvin Klein boxer shorts. She'd never wanted anyone like _this_ before, not even Stefan; she'd never really liked anyone enough to actually think about doing_ that_ with them. She thought about doing _that_ with Damon. She was out right ogling him.

"You know it's rude to stare Elena?" He said, lounging against the bathroom door, smiling cockily at her.

She laughed softly, and then snuggled down into the blankets, burying her head into the surprisingly soft pillow, sighing softly in contentment. She was eager for a night of cuddling with her sweetheart, she wanted nothing more than to feel Damon's arms wrapped around her again; any distance was way too much. He jumped in next to her, wrapping his arms round her waist and tickling her, she yelped in response, giggling into the pillows. Damon twisted her around to face him and placed a kiss on the end of her nose, he gazed at her; she looked so cute wearing his shirt.

"You are the cutest thing I've ever seen"

She laughed softly, thinking that, no; _he_ was the cutest thing in the _world_. Sensing her tiredness, Damon switched off the light then wrapped his arms around her so they lay together like spoons. He buried his head into her hair; his hands slipped up under her shirt to rest on her hips, relishing the warmth of her bare skin. He placed a last kiss on the back of her head, then almost immediately drifted off to the best night's sleep he'd had in his 567 years.

Elena woke before Damon and for a moment, just lay there revelling in the heat from his warm arms wrapped around her. She would easily stay like this for a while longer, but she wanted to look at him; she wanted to see his face. She loved watching Damon while he slept. She wriggled out of his embrace and twisted around so she was facing him. She smiled softly as she stared down at his face, he looked so relaxed, so content when he was asleep. She compared this Damon to the one she had first met all those months ago, the wild Damon who had used threats and violence to plant his seed in her heart; it would be a lie if she said she wasn't happy that he did. The Damon lying beside her looked so young, so happy and so heartbreakingly beautiful, with the small smile that graced his pout.

It was fascinating to watch him sleep, for although his face was so relaxed, Damon never really lay still; he fingers gripped the sheets, or his toes wriggled. He always had way too much energy to lie completely still, even when he was sleeping. She stroked his face, brushing a few silky strands off his face.

"Morning sunshine" He groaned softly, stretching slightly.

"Morning" She smiled, moving closer to him for a cuddle.

"What do you want to do today princess? The world is our oyster"

She grinned at that, it was so exciting to think that she could just name a place or a thing to do and Damon would just take her there or do it with her.

"Let's just have some breakfast first, I'm starving!" Right on cue, he stomach gave a massive rumble.

A shocked look settled on Damon's face.

"Sorry! I didn't even get you any dinner last night!"

"Damon, It's okay, I'll just go and have a shower and then we can go and find somewhere to eat" she replied, smiling softly at his worry.

She climbed out of bed and walked to the bathroom. She showered quickly and then wrapped a towel around herself, walking back into the bedroom to retrieve her clothes. When she got back into the bedroom, Damon was sitting on the bed, freshly washed wearing clean clothes, looking absolutely gorgeous. He smiled at her, and then pointed to a pile of clothes sitting on the chair next to the desk in the corner of the room. She grinned appreciatively, then slipped on the clean underwear, jeans and T-shirt Damon had brought her.

They walked out of the motel holding hands and emerged into a bright winter's morning without a cloud in the sky; a massive contrast to the thunder and lightning of last night. They got in the car and Damon drove to the city that the motel sat just outside. Elena's eyes lit up at the bright lights and busy traffic; small town life was never really for her. They drove around for a bit, until Damon spotted the cutest little Italian café, out of the bustle of the main street. He pulled in next to it and threw his car keys to the eager valet boy, obviously desperate to take a spin in Damon's Ferrari. They walked into the cafe, once again holding hands and Elena smiled at the authentic décor; this place was_ perfect. _They sat down at a small table by the window and pretty soon, a waiter came over to take their order. He was about 60 and spoke with a heavy Italian accent, so Damon just saved him trouble and spoke back in Italian.

"Possiamo per favore sono due ordini di frittelle e una bottiglia di champagne le tue migliori"

"Ah! Tu sei italiano, di dove sei?"

"Si ssignore, io sono di Firenze, te stesso?"

"Io sono di Milano, è stato bello parlare con te, signore, io vado a prendere il vostro ordine"

The waiter walked away with a smile on his face, obviously happy to have a real Italian in this cafe. Elena smiled at Damon, he seriosuly couldn't be anymore perfect. She had loved the content smile on his face while he was talking to that man in Italian. She wanted Damon to look happy like that more often, becuase if anyone deserved to be happy, it was definately Damon Salvatore. She joined her hand with his over the table, and leaned in for a soft kiss. When she pulled away, Damon kept hold of her hand, toying with the ring that now sat on her finger, an ecstatic smile appeared on her face every time she looked down at it, Damon had picked the_ perfect_ ring for her. The ring spoke of new life and promises of eternity with the one she loved above all others.

They were talking contentedly when their food came over and Elena clapped her hands in surprise when she saw the bottle of champagne sitting in an ice bucket bein brought over to their table. When their food was layed out in front of them, Damon poured them both a glass of champage, toasting to them and their future.

"To us, and how I found you after over five-hundered years of searching for something that would make me feel happy. To new beginings and to how someday, you're going to be Mrs alvatore"

She clinked her glass with his and beamed at him, just so happy to be here with him, living in the fast lane with Damon Salvatore. If you're asked her a few months ago, what she believed she'd be doing right now, she would definately not answer with this. Sitting in an Italian cafe with her fiance, _Damon_ Salvatore. Not Stefan, to be honest, it never really had been Stefan, sure she'd loved him, but that love was _nothing_ compared to this. This was everything.


	16. Chapter 15

_Say I'm bold and say I'm bad, say- you vanities- I'm vainer. But you Erinyes just add, that I kissed Elena. –Damon Salvatore; Nightfall._

"Damon, are we almost there?" Elena asked breathlessly. The reason she was asking this question was because Damon had his hands over both of her eyes, leading her to 'his favourite place in the world' Of course, Elena was _way_ too eager to get to Damon's favourite place; she wanted to know absolutely everything about Damon Salvatore, her _fiancé_. An idiotically big smile found its way onto her face at that thought. Her _fiancé _Damon Salvatore; who she was going to marry. Sooner rather than later she hoped.

"Yes Elena, almost there. _Mio Dio_, have some patience" She could taste the grin that was no doubt sitting on his lips.

She laughed along with him, enjoying the feeling of his arms around her as he covered her eyes. She found herself leaning further back into the embrace, moulding herself against Damon's warmth. He placed a kiss on the back on her head and she felt his lips move, whispering to her so quietly that she couldn't hear him. But she knew what he had said; she felt the words burry their way into her heart. _I love you. _She was _so_ proud of him, so proud of how far he'd come since she'd first met him; the wild and dangerous Damon Salvatore who had promised those around him that he had no feelings, he was such a good actor that Elena had almost believed him. _Almost_. She felt extremely privileged that she was the one he had opened up to; that she was the one who had seen what Damon Salvatore could be, if only someone just cared enough to _push_ him; push him to reach his potential, to be the great man she had known he was deep, deep down inside.

A blast of wintry air hit Elena's face as Damon opened a door to the outside; she could now hear the traffic and bustle of the city they currently inhabited. It was strange though; the sound of the traffic seemed far away, yet oh so close at the same time. She lost her train of thought as she felt Damon walking again, guiding her footsteps. His breath was hitting her neck and Elena couldn't stop her mind from remembering what had happened in Damon's room at the Boarding House. A blush crept its way onto her cheeks as she remembered it. She was going to give herself to Damon, there was no doubt about it, she would just rather wait until they were married, save herself for their wedding night; to make it even more special. This was why she was hoping they would get married sooner rather than later; she wasn't sure how much longer she could hold out.

Damon came to a halt and whispered in her ear.

"Keep your eyes shut for a second"

Elena did as she was told as she felt his hands leave her eyes and rest on her waist, pressing her body back against his. He rested his chin on her shoulder and whispered again.

"Okay, open them"

Elena sucked in a gasp as sky filled her vision, pure blue sky, stretching on for miles and miles in front of her. She looked down and saw what seemed like the whole world far beneath her; the cars and the people looked tiny and insignificant, far below her on the ground. She looked at her feet and she saw that they were standing on the very edge of the roof of a building, the highest building in the whole city. From up here it felt like the world was hers,_ theirs; _hers and Damon's_. _Like they were the only two people in the world who mattered, that they could rule the world or destroy it; as long as they were together. And they would be, Damon and Elena for all eternity. She felt like she was flying.

"Oh Damon" She breathed

Damon just squeezed her waist a little tighter and placed soft kisses on her neck. She was so happy, so happy that he had shared this with her, shared with her an intimate part of him. He had shared his release with her. If she and Damon weren't together, she would never have seen this. Never have experienced this sensation. Never felt like the whole world was hers. The whole world was hers anyway; _Damon_ was her world, her whole universe, like the universe that was captured in his eyes. Damon slipped his hands into hers, and spread her arms out like wings, he carefully stepped forward once more and Elena's feet left the safety of the roof, as did Damon's. They really were flying now. She'd done this before with Damon of course, but she would never get over the first step off the building or the first leap into the air, she would never get over the thrill of having Damon's arms wrapped round her as they defied gravity. It was exhilarating to be up here; in the air above the clouds and smog that covered the city. There was no chance of anyone seeing them, not through the dense cloud bank. It really was like they were in their own world.

Damon twisted her around after a while, so she was standing in the circle of his arms. She gazed into his black eyes, spotting the universe they held; _her_ universe. She would love him forever, she was sure of it, nothing could ever change this. If there ever had been a way of going back; back to Stefan and her life before Damon, it was gone now. There was no going back from this point. She had just dived headfirst into something, exactly what, she was not sure, but she was happy that she'd done, it, she would do anything for the man holding her so gently.

"Dance with me?" He asked so softly, that she almost didn't hear him.

She nodded in response, not quite able to form words. He laced one hand with hers and kept the other, firmly but surprisingly gently on her waist- just like he had done so many times before when they had danced- and started to sway. His feet found their way under hers so she was standing on him, him guiding her footwork; moving them in a graceful waltz; just like the waltz they had shared in Blodeuwedd's Ballroom, all those months ago, when her and Damon had been nothing more than a few stolen moments of passion. A romance doomed to end in heartache because back then, she'd loved another just _slightly_ more. How things had changed. She could barely remember a time when she hadn't been completely intoxicated with Damon Salvatore.

She looked into his black eyes, spying the faint flash of red and knowing what it meant. Damon was hungry, ravenous. She didn't hesitate as she smiled shyly, and then tipped her head back, waiting for the slight sting and then the incomparable pleasure. But it didn't come.

Damon gazed at his Elena, his _angel_ who was right at this moment surrendering herself to him in a way that last year would have made him jump in triumph. But right now, it wasn't the thing he desired the most. He was battling two hungers inside of him. The first was the obvious; the hunger that would never really be satisfied, the hunger that had ravaged him for half a millennium. The second was a different hunger, more complex, a new type of hunger; the hunger for Elena, and not just her blood. Hunger for the taste of her strawberry Chapstick and the feeling of her small waist under his capable hands. Hunger for her bare skin against his and the friction that somehow made his dead heart beat faster. He didn't quite know when it had happened, but the second, newer hunger was winning, it had over taken his instinctual need for the nectar that was blood, and he was happy about it. Happy that he was not praying on random women in a random country, but was instead here with his princess, his salvation, feeling more alive than he had ever felt, even when he was a human.

Instead of lunging for her throat, he fought the instinct and positioned her head differently, tilting her chin to him. He pressed his lips softly against Elena's, and kissed her. It was everything, just like it always was, every kiss made Damon sore inside, made him feel like every bad thing he'd ever done- which was a lot- was being redeemed. She certainly was his salvation. If there ever was any way that Damon could sneak into heaven, it would be clinging onto Elena's wings for dear life. He kissed her like he was going to die- again- and he was breathing his last gasp of oxygen through her lips, he wasn't going to waste a minute that he spent with Elena, he was going to cherish every fucking second. He was going to love her until he met the true death.

He felt Elena whimper slightly into his mouth and pulled away, giving her a second to breath. He sometimes forgot that she was still human, still human after all that had happened to her. She looked into his eyes and stroked his face, making him melt into the warmth of her hand; Elena was always warm, it was like she held the sun inside of her aura.

"I love you" Even now, whenever she said it, Damon felt and internal burst of joy, joy and appreciation to the angel that had saved him. Saved him from himself.

"I love you too"

He kissed her cheek, her nose, her closed eyelids; he kissed her everywhere he could think of, while still letting her get her breath back. He didn't want his lips to leave her skin, didn't want the taste of her to fade from his lips.

"Let's do it soon Damon" She gasped into his ear "Get married I mean, let's do it soon. I want it to be official; I want to give myself to you"

He pulled away from the spot on her temple where he was currently nibbling and gazed into her perfect eyes.

"Anytime, anywhere. Whenever you want" He whispered back, not breaking eye contact for a second, completely trapped in her gaze, his mind filled with one thought and one thought only. _Elena_.

He crushed their lips together like he had done so many times before, bringing her body even closer to him until they were flush against each other, no part of them not touching. They kissed for hours, when Elena lost her breath, Damon found other places to kiss, other places to love. No one saw them up there, no one saw the couple floating on the whispers of the wind. No one heard either, no one heard the whispered _I love you's_ and promises of eternity in each other's arms. No one saw all the love in the world, being held in a certain young man's eyes as his maiden wrapped herself up into his arms.


	17. Another authors note

_A/N; I'm just writing to say that I may be taking a SHORT and I mean __**short**__ break from writing this story, just to wait for my muse to come back and to decide where I want to take this story, If you have any ideas, you can write them in a review, I love to hear you thoughts. For the while that I'm taking a break from this story, I've started a new one, my version of __**Nightfall**__; basically because it's the first of the 'Return' trilogy of the books and I sort of wanted to write it my way, so while you're waiting for this to be updated (Which hopefully won't be __**that**__ long of a wait, haha)you can read my other story, __**The tangled webs we weave –**__another Damon and Elena story (what else would anyone want to read about? Bamon? -_-I don't think so: D) and see what you think of it. So, hopefully it won't take me too long to update this and to continue this story, even better than it was before. I love all my readers; you're all my inspiration to write! Massive loves!_


	18. Chapter 16

_Baby I've been here before, I've seen this room and I've walked this floor, I used to live alone before I knew you and I've seen your flag on the marble arch and love is not a victory march, it's a cold and it's a broken Hallelujah.- Jeff Buckley; Hallelujah_

Stefan awoke slowly, feeling as though he was wading through a lake of honey. His brain felt cloudy, like it was cocooned in cotton wool. His face felt stiff and sore. His body was aching, it felt as though all his muscles had been broken and then repaired. Above all that though, he felt as though he'd done something wrong, _said_ something wrong; as though he'd said something bad and had been punished for it, like he used to feel when father was mad at him, although, father was never really mad at him, it was mostly Damon that father had issues with. The thought of Damon brought everything back with a smash; catching Damon and Elena together, being so angry, saying things to Damon; the thoughts that he had never worded. He remembered Damon jumping him, punching and punching, the cold fury that had sat in his eyes, feeling as though Damon was going to kill him- permanently this time.

He let his senses stretch, listening carefully. He could not hear any movement in the house, could not sense any other being –human or vampire- in the house, it seemed as though he was all alone. But where would they be, where would _Elena_ be? He sent his powers out further, scoping out the whole town, expecting to sense her aura at her house or at Bonnie's or Meredith's, but he didn't. He couldn't sense her anywhere. He was starting to panic now, _where on earth could she be? _His Elena would not just up and leave like this, especially not after Damon had almost killed him. _Damon. _The thought sent shivers through his body. Yes, Elena may have been so sure that Damon had changed, that he wasn't completely evil, but Stefan knew better, knew that there was absolutely nothing redeemable about his brother. _Elena wouldn't just leave with Damon, she wouldn't do that to me, not after all we've been through_. A thought slowly snaked its way into Stefan's head, Elena wouldn't just leave with Damon, he _knew_ Elena and that just wasn't _her_. Damon must have taken her, forced her to go with him; _kidnapped_ her. Yes, that must be it; there was no way Elena would leave him for Damon.

Anger seemed to seep into Stefan, sinking into his being through his pours, wrapping its way around his heart. He would get Elena back, they _belonged_ together. He would hunt Damon down and kill him, he'd get Elena home safely and back to him if it was the last thing he did. _Why can Damon just not accept that she's chosen me? Why can he not just move on?_ He slid out of bed, wincing as his muscles and bones strained as he put weight on them. He limped to his wardrobe and pulled out a blue shirt, discarding the ripped and bloody one that he had been wearing. He ran out of the house using his vampire speed, sprinting into the old Wood behind the house, eager to find an animal or two to drink from; he needed to build his strength, so he could find his Elena.

"What do you think?" Elena asked as she emerged from the bathroom, twirling around so Damon could get a full view of the dress. Elena, personally, loved it. It was blue, so close to the blue of her lapis Lazuli eyes, it came in at the waist, accentuating her tiny frame and then flew out slightly, ending around her calves.

"You're perfect" Damon smiled from where he was splayed on the bed.

Elena's whole being warmed at Damon's words, how could someone so unbelievably stunning think that _she_ was perfect? She gazed at Damon from where she stood by the bathroom door. He was lying shirtless on the bed, the white sheets cocooned around his legs, mixing with the milky white of his skin. His black hair was still wet and slicked back from the shower, showing even more of his exquisite face; the face that looked like it had been carved by angels.

She walked over to him smiling, wanting to feel his arms around her. Damon sat up and grabbed her hands, pulling her down on top of him, where he proceeded to kiss and nibble her neck. She moaned softly, enjoying the contact, enjoying the way his cool lips felt on her burning skin. She could sense that he was hungry and was eager to give him something, she didn't care that she's just given him her blood last night, didn't care that they were being reckless; she was so wrapped up in Damon Salvatore. She felt the brief sting of his fangs before her world exploded, leaving her in a haze of colour and light. She felt like she was floating, drifting on clouds, the stars and comets shooting above her head. She was lost in oblivion; her body convulsing as she dug her nails into Damon's back, clinging on for dear life. She felt her eyelids becoming heavy, her limbs becoming languid and tired. Darkness clouded the edge of her vision, begging her to surrender. Damon retracted his fangs out of her neck and bit into his own wrist, like always, Elena was entranced by the slight of the dark red blood marring his translucent skin. She brought her lips to it, closing them in a kiss around the two droplets of blood, then started to suck, savouring the flavour of Damon's exquisite blood. After a while she pulled away, feeling stronger and back to her old self.

"I should carry on getting ready" She breathed, feeling giddy after their intimacy.

"How about we just stay in bed?" Damon purred grinning wickedly, slowly running his hand up her exposed thigh; her dress had ridden up.

Elena shivered, but pushed his hand away.

"You promised to take me out tonight! So we're going out"

"As you wish my lady" He sounded every bit the fifthteenth century aristocrat as he said that, flashing her his trademark wicked grin.

She hopped up from the bed and wandered into the bathroom, smiling at the mess Damon had left in there; his clothes were strewn over the floor and his shower gel was lying open, discarded on the floor. She stood in front of the mirror and got started on her make-up, enjoying the soothing normality of getting ready to go out. She'd barely worn make-up since she'd died- the first time, to become a vampire- and found it fun to apply the products and watch her transformation, seeing the way her face had changed since she'd been alive, well_, properly, technically_ alive anyway. She applied foundation, and then a little bit of blush to give her face some colour. Next she moved to her eyes, accentuating them with eyeliner and mascara. She finished the look with a dap of red lipstick. She slicked her hair back into and elegant bun, then surveyed her reflection. She looked grown up, which pleased her; she felt like a _woman_, not the little girl she always felt like in comparison to Damon. She walked back into the bedroom and was struck speechless.

Damon was standing in the middle of the room. The first thing that struck her, was that he wasn't wearing all black; he had a white button down shirt on, moulding his muscles and slim frame perfectly. His black trousers were slightly skinny and perfectly pressed, matching the colour of his hair exactly. His hair was even silkier than usual, casting rainbow reflections off it from every angle, sweeping across his forehead, framing his face perfectly. Elena's eyes flicked to his and the look sitting in them made her shiver; it was pure love, desire and appreciation. She felt more beautiful than she ever had in that moment, she felt so beautiful and alive, more alive than she'd ever felt before.

She turned to the full length mirror, dragging her eyes away from Damon and surveyed her reflection once again. Yes, she definitely did like the dress, it fit her perfectly. In a flash, Damon was behind her, his arms encircling her waist, pressing her back against him. He rested his chin on her shoulder and smiled at her in the mirror. Elena couldn't help but notice that they fit each other perfectly; it couldn't just be a coincidence how well they fit together. His arms were the perfect length and shape to encircle her, his chin fit exactly into the crook of her neck and when their fingers were intertwined, it was like they were one.

"We're perfect" He whispered into her ear, dropping a kiss onto her bare shoulder.

Elena turned to face him, hoping to show him with her eyes how much she loved him and how happy she was to be here with him, just wasting time with him. He kissed her softly and yearningly, the way she'd dreamed of being kissed, before she'd met the Salvatore brothers; when none of the boys she'd been with had actually meant anything to her. He pulled away and Elena let out a laugh; her red lipstick had come off on his lips, Elena was surprised to find that she found him extremely attractive like that, the red contrasting with his skin. He laughed too and ran the back of his hand across his mouth; rubbing off the lipstick. He took her hand and led her out of the hotel room they were staying in and out of the hotel. They emerged onto the street laughing and blissfully happy, fingers intertwined.

They were seated in a restaurant, the fanciest one Damon could find, because as he'd explained to her earlier; _'You deserve the best Elena' _he was so _sweet_. She put another forkful of salad in her mouth and sighed in satisfaction, it was so _good. _The hand that she was not using to wield her fork was holding Damon's across the table; she couldn't bear to be parted from him. He was toying with the engagement ring on her finger, and she smiled as she gazed down at it. She couldn't wait to be Damon's wife, sure her and Stefan had been engaged, but she'd never been desperate to marry him; on the contrary, she always seemed to be finding excuses as to why she couldn't marry him. With Damon it was different; there was nothing she desired more.

"I can't wait to be your wife, I can't wait for it to be official" She smiled, her voice made breathy with excitement.

"Neither can I. You know; I never thought I'd do this, get married. Even when I was human, I just never wanted it, never wanted to settle down with children and a wife, never wanted to grow old with someone"

"And now you do? You want that with me?"

"Yes, I want you, nothing or no one else, just you. Before you though, I never even considered it, I never even considered, settling down with kids, well, us vampires can't procreate so that'll never happen, but still, and living in a suburb in Connecticut with a wife"

"When I was with Stefan, I never wanted to be a vampire, not even when I was one; I resented it. I loved Stefan, but not enough to give up my life for him, not enough to spend eternity with him. But now I'm with you, I consider it on a daily basis, when I wake up in the night, I think about you and me for eternity, and it makes me want it. It makes me want to be with you until the end of time."

Damon looked shocked for a second, like he couldn't believe what she'd just said and then leaned forward and kissed her hand, staring at her with those endless midnight orbs of his. Elena couldn't resist; she leaned forward and kissed him, their lips locking in an ancient dance that they'd both mastered.

"I love you" Damon whispered against her lips, his cool breath hitting her softly.

"I love you too" She replied, giving him another peck.

Damon pulled away, and flashed her that wicked grin, diffusing the atmosphere. There was mischief in his black eyes, as he stared down at her now empty plate, then back to her eyes.

"Want to do something completely immature and fun?" He whispered.

"Yes" She replied, not even thinking about it; she'd do anything with Damon.

He looked around and she followed his eyes to their waiter on the other side of the restaurant. One more flash of that wicked grin and then he was off, pulling her with him. There was uproar in the restaurant as they saw Damon and Elena run out without paying. The waiter shouted after them, but they barely heard. They ran and kept on running, their hands joined, Damon half dragging Elena with him as he ran at human pace. They stopped about six blocks away, Elena panting and Damon roaring with laughter, excitement was fizzling in the air between them.

"Damon! I didn't know that was what you wanted to do!" Elena panted, trying to hold back a grin.

"Don't lie, you loved it!" He chuckled, pulling her into an alley and kissing her passionately, his hands roaming over her body, finally tangling up in her hair, just the way she liked it.

He pulled away, smiling again, but it was a different smile, the one that he only ever offered to her; a secret smile.

"Let me take you somewhere else" He said softly, with a look of anticipation in his eyes, as though he was scared that she would say no.

"Anywhere, I'll go anywhere with you"

He took her hand, intertwining their fingers and led her around some back streets. If Elena didn't know better, she would have said that Damon had no idea where he was going, but she knew Damon and she'd bet you one hundred dollars that he would never get lost unintentionally. They walked for a little longer and Elena enjoyed it, the crisp winter air, the stars sitting up in the sky, so like the ones that lay in Damon's eyes.

Damon stopped at what looked like and abandoned building; boards sat over the windows and main door, and the only other thing she could see was a staircase leading down, presumably to a basement. Damon flashed her another smile, then led her down the steps, into dense darkness. He banged on the door that sat in front of them several times and then it swung open, revealing a large man; a bouncer no doubt. Damon said something to the man quietly, so quietly that Elena could not hear. But whatever he had said seemed to have done the trick as the man stepped aside and motioned for them to pass through. They walked down a small corridor, completely pitch black with no lighting; Elena let Damon lead her through. Damon paused then opened another door.

The world split open with music and light. All Elena could see was a blur of dancing bodies and flashes off colour coming off dresses and suits. The music was old fashioned jazz, the type that you could dance properly to, like all the couples around them were doing. A live band played, the music was loud and uplifting; music from a different time. Damon pulled her through the door, closing it behind them. This place was obviously unauthorised and secret, but that just made it better; more exciting. Damon pulled her onto the crowded dance floor and started spinning her, leading her into a fast jive. Elena's dress flared out at Damon spun her gracefully, moving with the grace of a sleek panther. Elena threw her head back and laughed in happiness, she absorbed the atmosphere around her, catching glimpses of other dancing couples, none quite as graceful as her and Damon. She looked onto Damon's face which was filled with happiness and light; he was magnificent, like an angel sent down to Earth, well a devilish angel anyway. He continued to spin her and dance with her until Elena was sweating and dizzy, her hair dishevelled and the straps of her dress falling down.

They'd danced for hours, barely seeing the people around them come and go. They'd barely left the dance floor, only to get Elena glasses of water and Damon whiskey. The club was emptying up now, just a few couples left swaying on the dance floor. The music had slowed as well, turning more romantic and soft. Elena and Damon were barely moving now, just swaying the circle of one another's arms. Elena's head was rested on Damon's shoulder, her eyes closed in contentment, breathing in the sweet, unique smell of him. Damon's head was bent to rest on Elena's his lips in her hair, kissing her head softly. Elena lifted her head to look into Damon's eyes, happy to see the stars captured in the depths of them. There was no mischief left in them now, merely love and another emotion that Elena could not decipher, but whatever it was, it made her feel tingly on the inside.

"I love you" She said, voicing the thoughts that were flying in her head.

"I love you too" He replied, enjoying the happy flash in her eyes.

He bent his head to capture her lips, Elena yielded to him, moulding her lips against his. His hands once again found their way into her hair, tangling themselves knowingly in the blonde mass. Elena closed her eyes, exhausted from the dancing and the excitement of the night; this was definitely _the _best night of her life. Damon pulled away from her and Elena kept her eyes shut, enjoying the feeling of his sweet breath hitting her face. She moulded her body against his, putting her full weight on him; letting him hold her up.

"Do you want to get out of here Elena?" He asked softly and she nodded in agreement, finally opening her eyes.

Damon intertwined their fingers once again and started to lead her out of the club. Elena let her eyes survey the magnificent room one last time, taking in the large stage and the decorative dance floor, who would have thought that this could be in the basement of an abandoned building? They emerged into the cold air and Elena suppressed a shiver at the heat of the inside contrasted against the cold winter air. Damon surprised Elena by sweeping her up off her feet, picking her up like a newlywed bride; she closed her eyes and let her mind wander to what her wedding and wedding night would be like. _It will be perfect as long as I'm with Damon_ she though, a smile finding its way onto her lips. She relaxed into Damon's strong arms, burying her head into his chest, breathing in the smell of his shirt. She fell asleep like that, in the arms of her dark knight as he carried her back to her castle.


	19. Chapter 17

_I'll love you in the morning when you're still hung-over; I'll love you in the morning when you're still strung out. I'll love you in the morning; I'll love you in the morning. - Bloc Party; Sunday._

"Can I open my eyes yet Damon?" Elena questioned.

She was impatient and she was eager, actually she was verging on desperate. Damon had said he had a surprise for her, and of course she was unbelievably eager to find out what this gift was and to receive it. Damon had randomly woken her up this morning with a huge smile on his face and promises of a surprise that would make her love him forever, though obviously that was already a given. So Elena had quickly dressed and they'd hopped into Damon's car, driving right to the outskirts of the city. Damon had stopped the car and then they'd walked, and a few minutes ago, Damon had covered her eyes, telling her to get ready.

"Mmmmhmmm" he replied lazily "In a minute 'Lena just let me…"

She heard him fumbling with something that sounded suspiciously like a gate and then walked her forwards a few more steps.

"Right darling, go ahead; open them" Damon purred in her ear, breath hitting her softly, making her forget for a moment about her surprise.

Elena's eyes flew open and she was greeted by the sight of a front-door, a beautiful, red front door with a small stain glass panel in the centre and the number 303 emblazoned in gold in the right hand corner. Elena's forehead furrowed in confusion, why had Damon taken her here? Were they stopping here before they got to Elena's surprise? Maybe…oh! This, _this_ was Damon's surprise for her. He'd brought this place for her, for_ them. _She let her eyes roam over the exterior of the tiny house. It was painted a delicate white colour and the upstairs windows were open, revealing billowing white curtains. There was an attic room with a stain glass window that matched the panel in the front door. It was tiny; attached to other houses on either side which had houses attached to _them;_ forming a street full of houses. It was old, and so perfect that Elena felt tears spring to her eyes; he'd done this for _her_. This place was for them, a place for them to start their life together; this place was the start of something beautiful. She turned to face Damon.

"I…" She was struck completely and utterly speechless, this was the nicest most perfect thing anyone had ever done for her.

Damon just smiled and spun her round fully, so she got a view of a tiny, quaint front garden. She envisioned it after she got her hands on it; there would be flowers everywhere and a table and two chairs; one for her, one for Damon. She was brought out of her thoughts by Damon, dangling a set of keys in front of her face. She grabbed them, and then bounded up the steps to the front door, when she promptly opened it, revealing a small hallway. She walked in, Damon hot on her heals, then took a deep breath; breathing in the slightly musty smell of the house that was now hers; _theirs_. She was about to turn the corner, into the living room when she heard a cough from the doorway. Damon was standing there, smiling slightly apologetically.

"Invite me in then!" He laughed, a grin spreading across his features.

"Hmmm, maybe if you ask me nicely, I _might_" She joked back, enjoying his laughter.

"Please may I come in Elena? I'll make it worth your while" He asked, his crooked grin turning seductive.

She couldn't resist him when he looked at her like that, his face looked like the work of angels, although, no angel should ever be looking at someone like _that_.

"Come in Damon"

He was in front of her in second, arms circling her waist, lips crashing down on hers. She kissed him back, wrapping her arms around his neck, her feet lifting off the floor. He crashed them into the front door, her back hitting it hard, they remained there for a few minutes, entangled together. After a while pulled away slightly so Elena could get her breath back.

"Damon, what was that for?" She questioned breathily, a loved-up smile lifting her lips.

"I missed you" He replied simply, and she had missed him too, missed the feel of his hand in hers when he was outside and she was in the house.

He took her hand and led her into the living room. It was nearly empty, but Elena liked that; liked the possibilities this room had, she could decorate it however she wanted, she could imagine the pictures of her and Damon sitting on the fireplace and a cosy couch where they could cuddle up in the evenings. Light streamed in through the large bay windows, giving the whole room a bright and happy feel. Next came the tiny kitchen which also doubled as a dining room. They bounded up the stairs, Elena tripping as Damon grabbed her waist and slapped her butt. They were both roaring with laughter by the time they reached the second floor. She saw the bathroom; clean and white with a large free-standing tub that she was eager to try out, perhaps not alone. Next was a sort of storage room, that she could imagine being filled up with Damon's books; he would no doubt be buying more of those ancient damned things after they moved in, they could even get a couch in there and make it a real library; the possibilities were endless.

Her breath caught in her throat as they went up the next flight of stairs to the top floor. There was only one room up there; a bedroom. There was a large double bed in the centre, a cushy looking white duvet covering it, but that wasn't the thing that made her heart skip a beat, no; it was the rose petals that Damon had sprinkled over the bed. The only other things in the room were a large walk-in wardrobe where Elena and Damon could put their clothes; _together _and a large painting of a sunset that hung over the bed. She surveyed the perfect room once more, and then turned to gaze at Damon.

"I saw it when I was out one night after you'd fallen asleep. It was for sale, and I couldn't resist. Do you like it?" He asked, a modest smile gracing his features.

"I love it, thank you Damon"

He wrapped his arms around her waist and placed a soft kiss on her lips; a kiss that was as lazy as just a brush of lips, but it didn't matter, because they had the _time_. Everything had been rushed at first; running away and getting engaged, but now they had this place, there was no rush at all, they could go as slow as they liked, everything was going to be as easy as breathing from now on. Damon collapsed down on the bed, pulling her with him. Elena's back hit an impossibly soft mattress and the scent of roses swirled around, making her head swim deliciously. Damon hovered over her, positioning himself between her spread knees, their proportions perfect for each other. He pulled his t-shirt off over his head and Elena gasped at his beauty as the multi-coloured lights being thrown off the stain glass window hit his hair and skin, making him look too stunning for this world, or any for that matter.

"Are you ready for your house-warming gift?" he asked, gazing down at her face with that wicked grin twisting his features just right.

She reached her arms up in response, wrapping them around Damon's neck, desperate to feel his lips against hers again. He happily complied; placing sweet kisses on hers lips and jaw, hands lazily sliding under her t-shirt to ghost along her stomach. His lips travelled to her neck, worshipping the slender column and then ever so gently, his teeth pierced her skin. She moaned as he started extracting her blood, the both of them engaging in a love exchange older than time itself. Elena's world imploded, her whole being was infiltrated with love and light, she felt like she was caught in a hurricane, and in the middle of that hurricane was Damon, who was imploring the stars and the comets to fly around her in a delicious heady blur. Damon gently retracted his fangs from her neck, her blood still marring his lips and sunk his fangs into his bottom lip and then kissed her, their blood mixing in Elena's mouth, making her feel as though life as she knew it had ended and she had just died a glorious little death. Damon pulled away, placing one last sweet kiss on her lips and then tugged the bottom of her t-shirt; Elena lifted her arms above her head and helped him rid her of it. Damon hovered above her once again, spreading her hair across the pillow so it sat like a golden halo, red rose petals entwined in the mass.

"I love you Elena" He whispered, eyes suddenly serious "I love you more and more every second"

"I love you too Damon" She took a deep breath "and I'm ready, I don't want to wait anymore"

Damon looked at her, an unfathomable expression on his face, though it was familiar, it was a look that made something deep inside her being tingle in anticipation.

He bent his head again, resting his lips against hers, sharing his breath with her. Elena was hit by a brief sense of déjà vu, as memories of the night in the motel room swam through her head; the night that she had held him. He softly closed his lips on hers in a slow kiss, burning with pent-up desire. His hands softly slid into hers, joining in a hand-hold above Elena's head. His tongue coaxed its way into her mouth, tangling with hers and exploring the familiar territory. His hands left her s and travelled down her back where he expertly unclasped her bra, then gently slid the straps down her shoulders; removing it. He nibbled her bottom lip softly, and then trailed his lips down, past her chin, down her chest until he reached her breasts. He nuzzled them gently, earning a drawn out moan from Elena as she dug her nails into her back. He took her one of her nipples into his mouth and tugged it softly with his teeth, then sucked it softly, soothing it with his tongue. Elena arched off the bed, her fingers threaded into Damon's midnight locks, and she wrapped her legs around Damon's, their bodies flush against each other. Damon gave her other breast the same treatment, turning Elena's mind into something with the consistency of jelly.

Damon moved his lips back up to her shoulders, showering the creamy expanse of skin with kisses, leaving no spot untouched. He teased the spot just above her collar bone, nipping it softly with blunt teeth. He ran his fingers down her stomach, lightly caressing the flat surface with feather light strokes. Elena shivered beneath him, eyes rolling in pleasure. Damon replaced his fingers with his lips and started kissing his way down her body, circling her belly button with his talented tongue. He stopped at her jeans, then deftly undid the button and slid them down her legs. He sat back slightly and gazed down at her, she looked more beautiful to him than ever; her cheeks were flushed pink with pleasure and her lips were swollen from his kisses. He kissed her teasingly as he slipped her panties off, leaving her naked in front of him. She looked like an angel, with the white sheets beneath her.

He once again kissed down her body, taking care to not miss a single centimetre of flesh; every inch of her deserved to be appreciated and praised. He licked the dip of her hips and then showered kisses on her thighs, enjoying the way Elena tensed in anticipation beneath him. He smiled up at her from between her legs, that wickedly beautiful grin stretching his lips. He brought his lips to her in her wet centre extricating a moan from Elena, who gripped the bed sheets and arched her back. Damon lazily stroked her with his tongue, luxuriously lapping inside of her. He was intoxicated with her flavour, he could taste just how much she wanted him, and she would _have_ him, she already had his heart in a way that no other woman had. He continued his efforts, wearing Elena down until the slightest touch of his tongue made her whimper in want. He brought himself back to her lips and kissed her again, more passionately this time, trying to satisfy the hunger burning deep in the pit of his stomach; he _needed_ her. Damon leaned away from her slightly, searching her eyes; needing that final nod of consent because all of this had to be done on Elena's terms and he didn't want her to regret this. Her eyes were fizzling with excitement and a nervous smile graced her lips, and that was what it took. Damon brought his hands to the top of his jeans; undoing the button and his fly, then kicked them off. He rested himself on his elbows, so as to not put any weight on her and then once again sought out her eyes.

"No regrets?" He whispered, looking intently into her eyes.

"None, at all" she answered and then kissed his lips softly.

To reassure him further, she slid her hands to his hips and pushed his boxers down, so he could kick them the rest of the way off. Elena stared at him, she couldn't help ogling; he was _beautiful._ He looked like an angel or a Greek god, definitely too beautiful to be a mortal. He certainly _was_ God's gift to women and he was all _hers_. He had the most beautiful body she had ever seen on a man, she couldn't help comparing him to Stefan; Damon was leaner and thinner, his muscles more flat and taught. She had seen Stefan naked even though they hadn't gone all the way, and she had to admit, Damon was bigger in _that_ department. She wrapped her arms around his neck once again gripping him tighter than before and kissed him. The kiss was searing and Elena felt as though her whole body was on fire, every inch of her was touching every inch of Damon. Their skin was rubbing against each other, causing a friction that made Elena's breathing ragged. She placed her hands on his burning chest and let her hands trail down brushing across toned muscle and baby soft skin. They were writhing together on the sheets, legs tangled together, every inch of her touching every inch of him, every touch feeling like an electric shock. Elena felt Damon's hardness pressing up against her and she knew that she was finally ready.

Damon wanted her, he _needed_ her. He wanted to be inside her, connected to her in a way that Stefan or anyone else for that matter had never been. There were no clothes serving as shields and boundaries now, no, only she and he and the wildfire love and chemistry between them. They were meant to be like this, he recalled telling Elena that once, when they were dancing in Blodeuwedd's Ballroom; we were meant to be this way, like two flames that join and merge into one. He had been so right, because right now, he wasn't sure where he ended and Elena began. He felt her open herself up to him, let her aura shine bright, invite him in; she was ready.

He placed soft kisses on her lips, slowly positioning himself at her entrance; they had all the time in the world, there was no need to rush, or waste this moment. This was what he had been waiting for; this was what he had wanted ever since he had first kissed her on that cool morning on the way to the Dark Dimension. He was going to savour this, and remember this moment for the rest of his life. He slipped in slowly, gently, trying to cause the least pain possible. He winced at her soft groan of pain as he finally buried himself fully inside of her, marvelling at how they fit together perfectly; like she was his missing puzzle peace. He paused for a second, kissing her softly as she adjusted herself to his size. Elena's forehead was creased slightly in pain and he kissed the frown lines away, giving her time for the initial pain to die down. He then started to move slightly; he thrusted gently in and out of her, a moan escaping his lips because this was the best _ever_ and he had never imagined that it could be like this. Elena whimpered softly, her nails digging into his back, drawing blood but Damon barely felt it, too wrapped up in this pleasure. He picked up his pace, thrusting harder now, causing Elena to arch up underneath him and wrap her legs around his waist, her whimpers becoming loud moans.

Elena's whole world was on fire, she was burning and she felt like if she was to die right now, then it wouldn't matter, because this was_ it_, she was sure that nothing could ever top this. Damon continued to bury himself inside of her, his hips rocking sensuously. She was close; close to coming undone again, and she wanted it so _much_, wanted to let Damon bring her the most exquisite feeling ever. She could feel the orgasm building and felt Damon thrust harder, obviously close to his release as well. She moaned loudly, scratching Damon's back, leaving raw, red marks. And then she came, and she was lost in oblivion, she cried out, her body convulsing, she was sure that no one else could ever have felt this way before.

Damon's release was close; he sped up, desperate for the moment when he would come inside of her, making them one, even more than they already were. He growled low in his chest and in that moment, he was neither mortal, nor vampire, just Damon. He moaned loudly, closing his eyes, releasing his seed inside of her, his body was shaking and he felt week and deliciously tired. He felt _complete_. He collapsed down next to Elena, he twined their fingers together as he gazed up at the stain glass window watching the lights reflect around the room, memorising every single detail of right now, he was going to put this memory away for safe-keeping, take it with him everywhere, keep it forever. Elena turned to face him, her cheeks were flushed and her eyes were dancing, the sheet wrapped haphazardly around her naked body.

"I'm happy it was you" She said slowly, eyes cast down "I love you Damon, more than anyone"

"God I… I love you too; it's only ever been you"

She wrapped her arms around his neck and twined their legs together, getting as close as she possibly could. They lay there like that, content with the silence, words would just ruin whatever was passing between them right then. After a while they both fell into a peaceful sleep, completely wrapped up in each other.

"Has anyone by the name of Damon Salvatore stayed here recently?" Damon questioned the man at the reception desk.

Stefan had been following leads endlessly since he had found Elena missing, and most of them had been dead ends so far, but this one was promising. He had to hand it to his brother, he sure had been moving quite a lot, not staying anywhere for too long. Stefan had had an amazingly hard time tracking him, asking vampires all over the area if they had sensed him anywhere near; it was a good thing that his brother was infamous; otherwise other vampires would not have kept such a sharp eye out for him and may have missed his presence. But finally after following more dead end leads than he could count, he had finally come across a vampire who really had seen Damon, with a pretty little blond in tow,_ Elena_. So here he was, in some random city at the fifth hotel he had come to.

"Sorry Sir, I can't tell you that, we have customer confidentiality"

Stefan growled slightly at the man.

"You will tell me whether Damon Salvatore has stayed here recently" Damon compelled, staring the balding man straight in the eyes.

"I don't know, I've just started, but you could ask Linda"

Stefan nodded curtly.

"You will get this Linda for me" He compelled again, and watched the man walk into what looked like a staff room. A few minutes later, he emerged with a busty blonde.

Stefan nodded his thanks at the man, and shooed him away with a warning glance. He looked at the blonde and then started his questioning.

"Has anyone called Damon Salvatore stayed here recently?"

"How am I supposed to remember that?" She replied rudely, popping her chewing gum.

"Dark hair, pale skin, slightly shorter than me? He had a blonde with him with blue eyes." He compelled this time, losing his patience with the woman.

"Oh, _him, _he was gorgeous! That hair, those black eyes and that _body_! I tried every trick in the book but he was completely whipped on that blonde!"

"So he was here? Do you know where he went?"

"Yeah, but no, I don't know where he went, they just took off one day" She pouted.

Stefan sighed deeply, exasperated at hitting yet _another_ dead end. He coldly thanked the woman, and then stalked outside, where he sent his powers out as far as they would go; searching the area for his brother's aura. He had no luck; he didn't even get a glimpse of Damon's aura and had absolutely _no_ idea where he was. Stefan continued walking; searching for another vampire, hopefully this one would know where Damon was, and then Stefan could get his girl back.


	20. Chapter 18

_Its morning, you wake, a sunray hits your face smeared makeup as we lay in the wake of destruction.__  
><em>_Eminem ft. Rihanna; I love the way you lie part 2.  
><em>

The sunlight shone in through the window bathing the room in soft sunlight. The large windows were open and the white curtains were billowing in the breeze. The light bounced off the white bedspread, sending the room into a golden haze. Elena Gilbert lay awake, staring at the tiny dust particles floating around in the stream of golden light. She felt happy, blissfully happy. This was the most happy she'd felt in a long time; since her parents had died. Since then, she'd always had a small feeling of foreboding, as though she could sense that something bad was going to happen to her. Something bad _had_ happened to her, but that was all behind her now, she'd left all that behind when she'd hopped in Damon's car in the midst of that thunderstorm. Now she was just happy… and slightly sore, but she wasn't complaining; she _liked_ it. She wasn't usually a masochist, but she was willing to reconsider; this was heaven. Speaking of heaven; that was exactly what last night had been; heaven and more. She twisted around with a smile on her lips to face the boy sleeping next to her. God he was beautiful, no, beautiful wasn't colourful enough a word; he was _exquisite_. And she loved him, more than anything. He was still sleeping soundly, which Elena thought was slightly funny, him being the forever alert vampire and all...

She ran her fingers up his forearm, letting the baby soft skin glide under her fingertips. He looked so peaceful, so content. She let her eyes linger on his face for another second before they slowly slid downwards, she got a glimpse of perfect ice-white chest, then some ribs and then finally the trail of hair that led down to regions hidden beneath the white duvet. Regions she was desperate to explore once again…

Damon didn't wake for another hour, but Elena didn't mind, on the contrary, she enjoyed herself, she was extremely content just watching Damon sleep; the way his fingers clutched the sheets, the way his thick eyelashes sat on his cheeks, the way his toes wiggled. He really was the most constantly interesting person she knew; he just couldn't seem to stay still, she could sit for hours just watching him. She lazily trailed her fingertips along his stomach, and then let them go higher; brushing over ribs and then finally resting on his chest, the skin baby-soft under her fingers. Suddenly, the duvet was pulled up over her head, strong arms were encircling her waist and fingers were scrabbling on her ribs; ticking her mercilessly. She screeched, giggling manically and kicking out at Damon, whose hands slid lower, now attacking her bare hips. She pulled the cover off her head and emerged laughing breathlessly, Damon had stopped now, his hands merely caressing her.

"Stop it!" She giggled into the pillow.

"Make me" He countered, nipping her shoulder.

He rolled her on top of him, so she was straddling his waist. Elena looked down at him and a blush crept onto her cheeks as she remembered her naked state. She tried to grab the sheet to cover herself, but couldn't gather enough to gain herself even a stitch of modesty. Damon spied her efforts and cocked an eyebrow at her quizzically.

"Elena, darling, what are you doing?"

Elena's blush deepened; spreading across her neck and shoulders.

"Wait, no, you're _embarrassed_?"

She nodded her head slightly, her eyes downcast.

"You're embarrassed after _last night_? Really?" He chuckled, placing a finger under her chin gently, to lift her head to meet his eyes.

Once again Elena nodded, this time gazing into Damon's black orbs.

"You have absolutely nothing to be embarrassed about. You're the most beautiful, perfect thing I've ever seen, and that's saying something; I have been around for quite some time" His signature wickedly beautiful grin crept onto his face and Elena couldn't help but smile back.

"I love you Elena. I love your lips" He brushed his lips against hers softly.

"I love your neck, I love your stomach, I love your waist and your hips and your belly button; I love everything about you"

He rolled on top of her and laid his hands on her, and once again, Elena was completely lost in oblivion…

Sometime later Damon and Elena were back to where they had started. Elena's head was rested on Damon's chest as he threaded his fingers through her hair. Elena closed her eyes and let her mind wander, she thought about her and Damon and everything that had led them to this point of complete bliss. She could barely remember a time when they hadn't been like this; completely in love. She felt as though they had loved each other since the beginning of time, and in a way they had; they had started off as one when their spirits were formed, then they had been separated, destined to search until they found each other. Elena had searched, albeit unwittingly for Damon, she hadn't known what she was looking for, but she'd always had this sort of anticipation, she'd always known that something better was coming for her, and that when she found it she would finally be home. For a long time, she had thought that something was Stefan, but then Damon had come along, and everything had gone to Hell, the most glorious of Hells. He had fucked her whole life up, but she'd loved every minute of it, he'd set her whole world on fire, submerging everything in his out of control blaze.

Elena just lay there for a while, barely even thinking, lost in a lazy state of bliss. The thing that made her rouse was the realization that Damon's hand had stilled in her hair and his breathing had got deeper and heavier. She lifted her head slightly to look to Damon's face and found that he was once again asleep. He looked like an angel or a God or something; so peaceful and serene, with his black hair contrasting against the white pillow and the milky white of his skin covered haphazardly with the white of the sheet. Elena was suddenly struck with a sort of agitation, no, a desperation. A desperation to capture this beautiful moment before it was blown to pieces, but that was insane right? Nothing bad was going to happen. But still, she couldn't stop herself from carefully manoeuvring herself off the bed and walking across the room to pick up her iPhone. She kneeled up on the bed beside Damon and took a picture of him sleeping. She flopped back down and smiled dreamily at it; he looked gorgeous. She didn't hesitate before saving it as her screensaver, God she was whipped! She's always thought that girls who had pictures of their boyfriends on their phones were pathetic, but now she could see the appeal, especially if said boyfriend happened to be the most beautiful boy in the world and now she got to see his face whenever she checked her phone.

She was, well she was beyond anything she had ever been before, happier than she'd ever been before. She wanted to write this down in her diary; to record it, to remember, but alas, she had left her diary behind with her old life. But she had survived without a diary before hadn't she? On the way to the dark dimension she had recorded her thoughts on her… phone. Elena scrolled through her apps until she reached the voice recorder button and then pressed play, preparing to spill her heart out.

"Dear diary, or should I say phone? I can't deny that I feel slightly ridiculous doing this; spilling my innermost thoughts out to a piece of technology, but oh well, it's the best I've got right now. Usually, I would write all this down in my diary, like I have done every day for more years than I can remember, but I don't have a diary right now; that got left behind. Anyway, the reason I'm… speaking? To you right now is because I feel the need to tell you how I feel right now. Okay, right now, on the 18 of February 2011, you Elena Gilbert are happier than you have ever been, seriously, I'm _that_ happy, and it's all down to one boy, a very special boy. That boy is Damon, and he is more than you could ever have asked for, he's sweet and kind and loving and dangerous and he makes you feel _free_, he's that thing that you've been waiting for, for your whole life. Right now? Right now I feel… perfect, brilliant, in love? Yes, all of those and so much more, I think that maybe this is my reward for all that I've been through; this is what the Guardians are giving me back. About that, I still don't even know how Damon is here, alive, after the Guardians said that he was gone forever, though I'm not complaining, it's a miracle that I got my love back. My theory is, that he came back to life, because it simply wasn't yet his time to die; me and Damon hadn't been together back then, we hadn't got the chance to be together, and that's why he came back, because me and Damon had unfinished business. The most important thing that I have to tell you is that I am engaged! I am going to be Mrs Salvatore, and I guess I've known for quite some time that I'm going to be Mrs Salvatore, I just never thought I would be _this_ Mrs Salvatore; Mrs _Damon _Salvatore. There is also something else that I should confess… I lost my virginity last night, and it was _everything, _complete perfection and bliss and oh! I love him so_ much_, and I could keep on talking about how much I love him forever, but right now, although I feel perfect, I'm sweaty and my hair is knotty and I'm in _serious_ need of a shower, so I'm going to leave it there for today. Just remember that right now, Elena Gilbert, you are the happiest you have ever been, don't ever let him leave you; follow him to the ends of the Earth if you have to, just love him forever, because that's all you'll ever need; his love.

Elena locked her phone, smiling softly at the picture of the sleeping Damon that now served as her screensaver, took a look at the real thing, who was still out for the count and then shuffled off the bed, heading down the stairs for the bathroom. She'd never felt so… comfortable? Yes, that was it; she felt comfortable. She had to be comfortable to walk around the house butt-naked, but the way she saw it; this was _her_ house, so she could do whatever she wanted. As she walked to the bathroom, she opened all the windows she came to, letting in golden February sunlight and taking deep breaths of the fresh air. She entered the bathroom and walked over to the large, free-standing tub; she turned the taps on and filled it to the brim, tipping in masses of vanilla bubble bath. She slid in slowly, letting the warm water relax her tired muscles. As she let the warm water surround her and the smell of vanilla tickle her senses, she was transported back to another time, and another bath. A bath she had taken one night in a cheap motel in the middle of nowhere, a bath she had taken before a row, and then a night of cuddling, a night where she had made some realisations.

"Room for one more?"

She was brought out of her thoughts by Damon who was leaning against the doorframe, grinning suggestively. His hair was rumpled and perfectly messy and the only thing he was wearing was the white sheet wrapped around his waist, dangerously low, looking as though it was going to fall off any second…

Elena giggled softly and nodded her head, moving up slightly to make space for him. Damon didn't need to be told twice, he was in the tub in a second, sheet flying to the floor and taught muscles and white skin blurring. He smiled suggestively at her from the other side of the tub, gazing at her through the bubbles. He leaned forward and she did the same, so that their foreheads were resting against one another, she gazed into those midnight eyes and everything was _right._ She's waited so long for this, and been through so much, and now, _finally_, she was truly and blissfully _happy_. Damon closed the gap between their lips and kissed her lazily and languidly, his hands moved under the water to capture her waist and scoot her forwards so her legs were wrapped around his waist. The kiss gradually heated up, turning Elena's stomach into a pool of hot mush. Before Elena knew what was happening, her back was pressed against the bathroom floor, and Damon was on top of her, his hands roaming sensually over her body. He slipped his tongue into her mouth and she was sure that things were going to head the same way as last night and this morning, and she _wanted_ it, she wanted-

Knock, knock, knock.

Damon snapped his head up, their lips disconnecting with a suctioning sound. He growled low in his throat and then stood. She watched him as he wrapped a white town around his waist. She stood and did the same, giving Damon a questioning look.

"I'm going to go and get that, you should carry on with your bath" He smirked wickedly as he spied the water that they had slopped all over the floor, then gracefully left the room, walking purposefully towards the door.

Damon stood staring at the front door, contemplating just walking back up the stairs, picking up Elena and running away from this, but he'd never been one to run away from problems, on the contrary, he'd always been one to face things head on with a smile on his face. But this was different, this was more real than all the trivial battles he had taken part in, this was, this was _everything_. Everything was on the line. Of course he'd _known_ that Stefan had been searching for him, Stefan was weak and not good at shielding his aura from the probing minds of those stronger than him, which was just what Damon was. He had just hoped that he would have a little more time with Elena before Stefan came along and fucked things up, fucked _them_ up. Bracing himself, Damon twisted his face into the arrogant smirk that seemed to fit him just right, and then opened the door.

The door swung open to reveal Damon leaning lazily against it, cocky smirk in place. Stefan's eyes slid down, to see Damon clad only in a white towel; even his attire seemed to be mocking Stefan right now. Stefan's eyes slunk back to Damon's face, and he wanted to do nothing more than to just punch that smirk right off Damon's lips. But then the two brothers met eyes, and just for a second, Stefan wished that it didn't have to be this way, wished that Katherine had never happened, wished that he had died over 500 years ago an old man, with children and grandchildren and wished the same for Damon. Green eyes met black and Stefan realised that he'd never really even bothered to get to know Damon, they had known each other for almost 600 years, and Stefan honestly didn't even know Damon's favourite colour, and he hated it, hated that after over 500 years they were back to this, that they had only_ ever_ been this… But then the moment passed, and all the animosity and hate that Stefan had built up over the years rushed through him, clouding his vision.

"I would very much like it, if you would _give me my girl back_!" Stefan spat, face twisted into a hard mask.

"I'm not going to give her to you _brother,_ and I would not recommend trying to _take_ her" Damon said just as harshly, his eyes boring into Stefan's.

Stefan slammed his fish into Damon's jaw, and Damon fought back, the two of them locking into the same death-match that they had perfected over their many years. As Damon and Stefan fought it was as though they had come full circle, it was as though after 500 years they were finally back to where everything had ended and started. It was almost as though they had gone back in time, Stefan could almost see Damon's blade smashing against his as they kicked and punched, he could almost see his father in the background screaming at them to stop, because they were brothers and brothers were not mean to be this way… Except this time, it was not Giuseppe; it was Elena, and this was not the 1500's, this was 2011. Elena was stood at the top of the stairs wearing only a white towel similar to Damon's, and Stefan stopped mid-punch, because Elena was obviously not being held here against her will. His eyes moved between Damon and Elena, taking in their similar states of undress and it finally hit him that Elena wanted to be here, wanted _Damon, _and she had left him for this…

"E-Elena?" Stefan choked out, suddenly feeling faint "Come on, I'm here to take you home" he said slowly, trying one last time to win her over, to get her to choose him, to do _something_.

She didn't reply. She walked silently down the stairs and stopped in front of Damon, raising a hand to caress his split cheek, wiping off the blood that marred the flesh. She then pulled his face down to her height and examined him clinically and even though Stefan could not see her face, he could sense her wince as she spied his black eye and bleeding nose.

"Are you okay?" She whispered softly, affectionately.

"Aren't I always?" He replied, cracking a smile that Stefan had never seen before; it was neither cocky nor seductive, merely happy.

"No, you may think you are, but you're not invincible" She half cried, half laughed, her voice choked up with emotion.

Damon didn't reply, just ghosted his hand along her forearm in a casually intimate gesture.

Stefan stood and watched the scene unfold in front of him, and he saw the way their eyes locked as though they would never want to look at anything else, saw the casually intimate ways they touched each other, that suggested that they had touched each other like that many a time before. Most importantly, he saw the look in Damon's eyes, a look of pure contentment, happiness, and…love? He had never seen Damon look at anyone that way, not even Katherine who Damon had claimed to have loved, but now he saw this, he knew that that was not the case.

"You shouldn't have come here Stefan" Elena said calmly, breaking Stefan out of his thoughts.

There was something scary about the calm in her voice, something threatening about the way she was looking at him, as though he had broken her most prized possession, but of course, he had in a way.

"I- he, I. I came to take you back home Elena, to save you from him"

Elena looked at him; there was certain clearness in her eyes, which seemed to imply that she had everything figured out, and that scared Stefan for some reason.

"But Stefan, I didn't need saving"

"He took you Elena, this is Damon we're talking about, and he'll use you and take from you and never give you anything in return" Stefan was pleading with her now, trying his hardest to just make her stop looking at Damon like that!

Elena shook her head slowly, droplets flying off her damp hair.

"How can he give me nothing, when he's already given me everything I ever wanted?"

"Elena, he's _evil_"

"I can't believe that after all this time, and everything that Damon's done for you, you could still believe that he is ultimately evil. He saved your _life_ Stefan, more than once, and I can't even begin to count all of the times he has saved me"

"Elena, please don't do this" Stefan begged "Please don't throw everything away for him"

Elena walked up to Stefan slowly; when she reached him she took both his hands in hers and looked him right in the face.

"I'm sorry Stefan, but it's Damon. It's been Damon for a long time now, it's-it's always been him really if I think about it. I _loved_ you Stefan, I'll always love you, you were my first real love, and you never forget that. But I just, he's- he's my _everything _Stefan, he's my forever"

Stefan nodded slowly, a look of sadness and defeat crossing his eyes.

"When?" He asked slowly "When did you start loving him?" Stefan didn't know why he was doing this to himself, why he was asking a question when he knew the answer would torture him whatever it was.

"When I first met him, I felt this sort of pull, this _need_ to know him. But it really started when we came to rescue you, being with Damon alone all that time, I couldn't help but let my feelings run free and although I still really loved you, I started to love him as well, but I loved him in a way that scared me, that I wasn't able to handle, so I carried on with you"

"That's why you were acting so strange after you rescued me, when Damon went back to the dark dimension with Bonnie, you missed him and you were jealous" It wasn't a question, Stefan was merely stating a fact, but Elena felt the need to answer. She nodded her head softly, letting go of Stefan's hands.

She walked back over to stand with Damon, drawing patters on his hand with her nail in a way the suggested that she didn't even realise she was doing it. Damon threaded their fingers together and squeezed her hand and Stefan couldn't help but notice the soft smile that graced Elena's lips at the contact. He looked at them standing over there; together. _The way they were meant to be_. The thought popped into his head randomly and it seemed _right. _Stefan turned on his heal and walked out of the house, closing the door softly behind him. He walked across the small garden and was about to open the gate when someone sped in front of him; blocking his way.

Damon stood there in all his glory, lounging grace and staggering unhindered perfection, exquisite in a way that always made Stefan bit his cheek in jealousy. Stefan stared at his face, looking into those black eyes that he knew had first belonged to his mother and felt the slightest of pangs of regret. He thought back to that day, the day that his human life had ended, the day that Damon had killed him and didn't feel the sting of hate that he usually felt, he felt acceptance. As he looked into the face of his brother, he knew that it would be the last time, the last time that he would ever see that cocky smirk sitting on that annoyingly perfect face. He looked at Damon and for the first time in a long time, wished that he had taken the time to get to know Damon, he had been told by his father from a young age that Damon was a ne'er do well and an idler, not someone to look up to, and Stefan had believed Giuseppe, but standing here now, Stefan wandered if that was actually the case, or if Damon was just complex and misunderstood to the extreme. Stefan would never know, because this was it, and it was alarming how bittersweet it tasted.

Stefan was startled as Damon slowly extended his hand, Stefan grasped it and held on for a second, once again meeting those ominous black eyes. Damon nodded slightly and then Stefan pulled his hand away. Damon stepped aside and Stefan opened the gate and walked away, walked right out of Damon's life forever.

"_Goodbye brother_" Stefan heard in his mind, but when he turned to look at Damon all he saw was an empty garden, the gate firmly shut.


End file.
